Lance's Role
by Thrudgelmir2333
Summary: In Sanctuary, 20 years before Seiya gains his Cloth, Pegasus Lance, a rebellious Saint, embarks on a incredible life journey. As he meets the whole of Saga's Gold Saint generation as well as a pure hearted Andromeda Saint while fighting many battles against Sanctuary's greatest enemies, his dark fate will unfold itself and Lance will learn what it truly means to fight for Athena.
1. 1A: Discussion

Notable OCs up until now that I own: Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation;

Notable Original concept (until now): Sanctuary Town;

Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic: Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic: 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography

Author notes:

**-To old readers:** During the development of the 3rd Arc of Version 2, I became increasingly concerned with the staggering difference in quality between the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Arcs as well as with the escalating number of retcons. After a bit of soul-searching, I decided it was for the best to revamp the 1st Half of the story so as to correct what was wrong and so that I could start posting this story in different sites with a bit of pride. I hope you understand my decision.

**-To new readers:** The age of original characters of the Saint Seiya manga/anime have been altered to fit with the events of the story. Moreover, always keep in mind that the story takes place during the 1970s, approximately fifteen to twenty years, depending on what I decide for the characters later on, before Seiya gets his Cloth.

Please enjoy and review.

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**Prologu****e**

**Sanctuary, Star Hill, early May of 1960…**

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It was the middle of the night and Shion, former Gold Saint of Aries and current Pope of Athena, was feeling agitated and with insomnia. The day had not been particularly difficult, but he just felt restless for some reason. He had left his chambers in the Pope's Temple and decided to go out for some fresh air. He contemplated a walk around Rodario or just gaze at the magnificence of Athena's statue, but ended up deciding to go to Star Hill for some night time _reading_.

As he stood before Star Hill's temple and gazed at the night sky, he found that the stars seemed to have little to say to him, if anything. Every now and then, he would go to this place to see if the future had anything reserved for him and his Saints. Exactly two hundred and nine years had passed since the Lost Canvas War, however, and the sky was yet to say anything interesting to the new Pope other than the birth of a more powerful Saint every now and then.

Reminded of the old conflict with Alone, Shion's eyes turned to the landscape of Sanctuary. They eventually spotted the far off cemetery were Sisyphus's entire generation rested after one of the bloodiest battles at the Sanctuary. If he squinted right, he could even make out some of the largest crosses and mausoleums there. It was in situations like these, when he was reminded of how long his friends were dead, that Shion realized how old he had become.

After all, his body was but a shadow of its former self. His hair had turned white and his face and body were marked with wrinkles and warts. To a Lemurian like him, who lived decades of youth and power well beyond the lifespan of any human, the inevitable fall into weakness and frailty he was now experiencing somehow felt even more devastating.

Still, he had been a good Pope. Sanctuary was safe and sound and despite the World Wars the human race was still in one piece. Yes, Shion could be proud of what he had accomplished as the one chosen by Athena to lead her Holy Land. No one could take that away from him. He took off his black mask, knowing that no one would bother or spy on him in that sacred place, and looked up to the sky. "_Athena, the time for your next reincarnation is not that far off, is it? Don't worry; Sanctuary is waiting for you safe and sound, just like I promised when you made me the new Pope._" He thought to himself.

Shion was about to head back to the Golden Zodiac when the sudden sound of a wooden cane poking the floor along with weak steps was heard. Initially he thought it was the familiar sound of his equally aged friend Dohko walking around, but Shion's eyes widened when an unfamiliar voice was heard. "Good evening, your Holiness. It's a pleasant, well lit night to be outside, isn't it? Heh, Heh, Heh, Heh!"

Shion's golden cosmos burned and he turned around instantly when he realized someone had sneaked up behind him, possibly an assassin. However, much to his shock, the 'assassin' was but an old woman, walking towards him with a cane and covered by a black hooded cloak. Her face was extremely wrinkled, even deformed, with a long pointy nose and warts that gave her a very witch-like appearance that made Shion feel like he shouldn't complain about his own age.

Shion raised his guard. "What? Who are you and how did you get here undetected by my Saints?!"

The woman chuckled. "I am Hecate, Witch of the Moon." She announced, bowing as much as her pained, hunchbacked body could, while the clouds seemed to clear away from the full moon. She saw the Pope's eyes grow fierce with this revelation. "Don't worry, your Holiness. Despite me serving both Lord Chronos and Lady Artemis, I mean no harm to you or Athena."

However, Shion did not lower his guard. He had heard of this woman through tales of deceit and betrayal brought to his ears by his informants and fellowmen of past wars. Hecate's name had no clean reputation on it. "Is that so? Why should I trust your word? What do you want with me?"

Hecate raised a brow at him. "Indeed, I sense distrust in you. Has someone told you something bad about me?" she asked. "Was it a mysterious young boy named Shun and his comrades?"

Shion widened his eyes, recalled of Andromeda Shun, his brother and his two other Bronze Saint comrades. He and Dohko had never really found out from where exactly the group came from, but Athena seemed to have undying trust in them. "Yes, that's correct. He told me you allowed him to participate in the Lost Canvas War, but that you had tricked him and Athena somehow."

"I see… I assure you, though, that I have done nothing of the sort in all of my life-"

"Speak your purpose, witch, or leave!" Shion insisted, sensing that Hecate was digressing.

Hecate lost her wicked smirk and became rather somber. "Very well, then." She accepted, resting both hands on her cane. "I am of no threat…because I am dying, your Holiness. I have not long for this world. I was hoping to find a way to rejuvenate myself before that moment came, but it seems time is running out for me." She revealed. "You, as a Lemurian, have had a long life too and probably understand how I feel."

The Pope calmed down. Now that he thought of it, he was sensing great frailty in Hecate's cosmos, even beyond what her decrepit looks already suggested. If it wasn't for the fact that Hecate was not to be trusted, he would probably feel sorry for her.

Hecate saw that the Pope was giving her a chance to speak and she took it. "As long a life I've had, I have yet something to do, something to tell you, three things to tell you to be exact. Three great prophecies that I have had that you would do well to hear."

This time, however, Shion couldn't help but laugh. "Prophecies, you say? Now I know that you're lying." He accused. "While sometimes the stars can still tell us of what is to come, there hasn't been anyone capable of actually seeing the future or 'reading the wind', as you prophets have called it, in five hundred years."

"Correction, your Holiness," interfered Hecate "There hasn't been anyone _born_ capable of predicting the future in five hundred years. Those born before that are still perfectly capable of listening to what the wind has to say." She saw Shion's gaze becoming impatient and aggravated. "Please, just hear me out. It is my destiny to tell you these things before I die. I promise not to waste your time."

Shion scratched his chin, pondering her words for a while. What harm could come from granting the old woman her final wish of letting her voice echo beyond her death? On the other hand, she could be looking towards manipulating him. However, Shion was confident that he would not be fooled by this woman. "Go ahead; speak to your heart's content."

Hecate seemed to regain her smile. "Thank you, your Holiness. You are wiser and kinder beyond your kin." She complimented. "However, I am afraid my first prophecy is a terrible one." She waved her walking stick around a bit and Shion found himself placed within an illusion together with her. "But let not my words alone guide you to it. Instead, allow me to show it to you."

Shion widened his eyes. "W-What? What is this, an illusion?!"

"Yes. This is Sanctuary…in my dream."

Shion's jaw dropped. He was standing in the air together with the witch and below their feet was the Holy Land of Athena. However, it was a place burning with war and destruction. Clouds of black smoke emanated from everywhere, darkening the skies. Flames could be seen on the roofs of Rodario as soldiers clashed against each other on the streets. The earth shook and the blackened sky was ripped apart as many powerful Saints clashed with each other and with other warriors from different armies, such as Specters and Mariners.

"Sanctuary? What is going on here?" The Pope demanded to know as he saw destruction spreading through his Goddess' domain.

"I have dreamed of dissent, Pope Arles" Hecate called him, as it was the name Shion chose for himself as a Pope. "I envisioned event of rupture and violence in the future that will tear Sanctuary apart."

The elderly man stared at the many armies slaughtered citizens and shattered homes. However, Shion's eyes didn't truly widen in horror until he saw the soldiers marching with heads on their spears and planting flags on roofs and high spots. They were flags of war and of different Gods, claiming bits of Sanctuary as their own to destroy while the Saints themselves couldn't stop shouting at and killing each other for no apparent reason. The sound of explosions, strange shots, screams and metal clashing were a constant and the reek of blood and gore filled the air.

And in the sky, beyond the clouds, bright divine eyes watched the chaos and rained destruction and death on top of it.

Shion screamed as he saw Sanctuary be engulfed by the heavenly wrath. Sweat filled his face. "No, this can't be! You must be tricking me."

"This is what I've seen, your Holiness." said Hecate, apparently finding the scene of destruction to be no laughing matter. "My first prophecy is one of a Great Age of War which scale hasn't been seen in a thousand years in Sanctuary."

Shion turned to her. "A thousand years? Is this because of Hades?!" He then grabbed her black collar and demanded an answer. "Is he the one causing this?"

"If only." she just said. "Unfortunately, the Age of War that is to come is not led by just Hades, but many forces and many great evils, godly _and_ human alike."

"No, this is impossible!" Shion let go of her. "This has to be a lie. So many conflicts could not start in Sanctuary so suddenly and in a row. Not on my watch!"

Hecate made the illusion disappear, returning them to Star Hill. "I do not ask you to believe me. You'll see it happen with your own eyes. As the Pope, you'll have a front row seat to Sanctuary's Apocalypse."

Shion gritted teeth and tightened his fists. His first instinct was to call her a liar and expel her from that sacred place before she tainted it further. However, there was something in her voice that sounded too honest, but perhaps it was just because she really was nearing her end. Almost against his own will, Shion found himself asking "What are the other prophecies you had?"

Hecate's high pitched laugh returned all of a sudden. "My second prophecy is one that will please you immensely, for it is one speaking of the return of legendary heroes, friends of yours." She revealed. She created a second illusion, this one of many men in golden armor standing behind her, their faces shadowed by their helmets. "Their reincarnation is at hand, oh Holy Father. Your dead comrades are returning from the beyond!"

"…What?"

"Sisyphus, Aspros, Asmita and the rest of their generation… I have dreamt of their return to your side." Hecate's smirk widened with the look on Shion's face. "They will come one-by-one. Sagittarius and Gemini will be the first to arrive together with Leo, who is Sagittarius' baby brother, and then a new Aries Saint will be brought to your House by a crying child. I have even dreamt of their names; Aiolos, Saga, Aiolia, Mu, Milo, Camus, Shura, Aldebaran, Aphrodite, Mephisto and Shaka. The Libra Saint, however,-"

"Wait, what are you saying?" Shion shouted, waving his hand at the illusion of the eleven Golden men. "Are you saying that my lost comrades, my long dead friends,… are returning?" Hecate nodded at this. Shion couldn't believe his ears. "_This is __incredible__. She just _has_ to be lying! For my friends to all return from the grave and become Saints… is too good to be true! __And a__ new Aries Saint 'brought to me by a crying child'? What does she mean?_" He saw Hecate stare at him, wondering what kind of conclusion Shion was making. "_My Master once spoke to me of the prophets of old and how more often that not they did not understand what the 'winds' told them, but limited themselves in passing on the knowledge they received to whom it was meant to. Could this witch be telling the truth?_"

"Even though they carry different names and a new Aries comrade, they _are_ your old comrades returned from the cycle of reincarnation, destined to take their old roles again." Hecate insisted. "They will play an important part in this Age of War as the new Saints of Gold. I understand you already have a fully active generation of Gold Saints, but you would do well in finding these children and recruiting them as soon as possible."

The Pope spent about a minute in silence, contemplating her words, as he leaned his back against a pillar of the Star Hill Temple, as taken aback as he was. If Hecate was telling the truth, a new age of war was coming but he would get to see his long lost comrades once more, comrades that had died at his side so that he could become the next Pope and that he missed so much. He stared at the deformed, elderly witch and saw a look of interrogation in her face as she tried to discern if Shion was believing in her or not.

"…What is the third prophecy?" Shion asked.

"Ah, the third and most important prophecy…" Hecate announced. This time, there was no need for illusions to demonstrate her vision so she just dispelled the one of the returning Gold Saints and let her words do the work.

"_What could be more important than an apocalyptic age of war during my reign as Pope and all my friends returning from the dead to fight it?_" Shion wondered to himself.

"A child will be born… very soon…within this very year even." said Hecate. "This child will be born with eyes red like blood and a heart filled with the flames of hatred of the Phoenix. He will have a pivotal role in this great age of war, for him to be on your side or against you could determine whether the Goddess of Victory favors you or not!"

Shion rubbed his eyes and composed himself. "A child, you say? ...With red eyes?"

Hecate nodded. "Yes. He, too, is the reincarnation of a powerful warrior from the past. You must find this child and take him to your side. If you don't… well, not even I know what will happen, but it won't be for Athena's benefit." Hecate then started limping away.

"_The reincarnation of a warrior of the past with the flames of Phoenix in his heart?... Could she be talking of Ikki, Shun's brother?_" He tried to stop her. "Wait, where are you going?"

"I have nothing more to say, your Holiness. I have given you my three prophecies. It is you who must decide whether to believe them or how to deal with them, though I recommend you follow my advices." Hecate then started to magically fade away into nothingness. "Farewell, Holy Father. This will be the last time we'll see each other."

"Wait!" Shion's hand reached out for her, but seemed to phase through her image. Shion stood there and watched as Hecate disappeared into thin air, leaving the Pope alone in that steep hill, talking to himself.

The wind blew strongly around him, making his white cloak wave and contributing to the way the witch just seemed to be gone with the wind. Shion stared at the emptiness before him, panting and unsure how to react. Eventually, he calmed down and thought things through. "_An Age of War, my lost comrades and a red eyed child connected to the Phoenix... This all sounds too ludicrous to be true._" He concluded. "_Yet, some things she said made sense, so what if it is true? What if Sanctuary really is standing at the edge of the abyss and I can't even see it?_" Shion's eyes then turned to Athena's Colossus, which stood at the end of the Golden Zodiac. His eyes narrowed in determination. "_Regardless of the answer, I vowed to protect Sanctuary and lead the new generation of Gold Saints until Athena returns. Whether or not that witch was lying, that promise does not change. But, if I see that Hecate really was telling the truth, then I'll make a new vow…of doing everything I can to stop that madness of an age she said would come at all costs!_" Shion's fist then tightened as if to enforce this promise.

As the Pope placed his black mask back in its rightful place, he took one last look at the stars through its red glass eyes. He spotted the Pegasus constellation in the sky whose' stars seemed to shine unnervingly for a moment. Shion shook his head, believing himself to be too tired and seeing things, and left behind Star Hill for another star-gazing night.

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**Chapter 1**

**First Arc**

**Episode 1**

**The Discussion**

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_"The curious thing is...his origins are, in retrospective, a bit unclear. He spent his childhood in Greece and he met the whole of Saga's generation, but considering the mystery regarding his parents, no one can fairly assume anything about his true origin. Even his own name was handed to him at the age of 10 by a Sanctuary Silver Saint..."_

- Libra Dohko to Dragon Shiryu, regarding Pegasus Lance's childhood

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**16 years later (1976), Sanctuary, at the Pope's Chambers…**

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The eleven year old winged Gold Saint made his way across the grand halls of the Pope's temples as he adjusted his headpiece on top of his red bandana. He had been called a couple of minutes before to a Gold Saint meeting, by a messenger from the Pope, and he was already running late. He was working at the hospital as a volunteer so he was away from his Temple. Otherwise, Sagittarius Aiolos would never let himself fall so short in the Pope's expectations.

As he passed by the corridor leading to Athena's throne room where the meeting would be held, his blue eyes spotted a painting on the wall of a green haired Bronze Saint with a cloak and a shadowed face. The title "Great Bodyguard" was written on the frame's bottom. Aiolos smiled. The mysterious Bronze Saint who arrived with Athena during the Lost Canvas War was one of his favorite legends of the 18th Century.

The two foot soldiers standing guard at the large door, members of the elite Papal Guard, uncrossed their halberds. "Lord Sagittarius, His Holiness awaits you." They called.

"Yes, I'm coming right away." He said as he opened the doors and closed them behind him. He faced Athena's throne room. "I'm sorry I'm late. I was occupied at the moment of summoning."

All six pairs of eyes in the room turned to him. They belonged to the Pope himself, who sat in Athena's throne, and to five armored Gold Saints, which included three members of the old generation of Gold Saints before him. Six years old Mu, one of the two from his generation, seemed to brighten up from his bored face when he saw Aiolos while twelve years old Saga just offered him a reprehending glance for being late. The Gold Saints took their spots before the Pope according to their generation and constellation.

The Pope got up from his seat. "It's alright. You're just in time. Are you aware of the meeting's subject?" he asked. Aiolos shook his head as he took a spot next to Saga. "Daniel, if you please?"

Taurus Daniel, one of the three older Gold Saints stepped forward. He was a towering presence in that room, easily standing over ten feet tall and sporting long, blonde hair running down his back. He crossed his arms. "We have been called here by the Pope to discuss the promotion of a certain Saint to our status." He said. "In other words, depending on what we conclude in this meeting, we may gain another Gold Saint comrade."

Aiolos widened his eyes and smiled. "Really, that's great! Who is he?" But Aiolos then came up with a possibility that changed his look into one of dread. "Wait, it's not Aiolia, is it? I know I said I accepted the possibility of him joining the ranks, but only when he was older!"

"Calm down, already, they're not talking about your brother. They're talking about someone else." said Saga, relieving his rival. He knew Aiolos and Aiolia ever since the trio's orphanage days and knew the Sagittarius would freak out.

"Well, who is it, then?" asked Mu, the six years old Aries Saint. He then noticed how the expression on the three older Gold Saints, Daniel, Capricorn Kirin and Aquarius Malta, had become worried or disgruntled.

Shion paused to look over the present members of the Golden Zodiac once more, especially Aiolos, Saga and Mu. He couldn't help but smile behind his mask. Aiolos and Saga were dead ringers of Sisyphus and Aspros and just like Hecate had predicted, they arrived at the same time with Aiolia, a toddler version of Regulus, in tow. More and more he believed in his heart that the witch's second prophecy really was true and that he would get to see all of his dead friends once more.

However, did this mean that the first and third were real as well? Were the Age of War and the red-eyed child's importance in it really as inevitable as Saga and Aiolos' arrival? He couldn't know for sure. All he could do right then and there was to focus on the second prophecy.

"He's a rather famous name in Sanctuary. He became a Bronze Saint two years ago and has been climbing the ladder ever since," said the Pope while Mu tried to contain a yawn. "He's currently running for the Cancer Gold Cloth after having proven to have unlocked the 7th Sense. You would all know him as Pegasus Lance!"

Aiolos widened his eyes and Mu snapped completely out of his boredom. They now realized why the meeting was necessary.

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**Meanwhile, at the entrance of the Aries Temple**

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The foot soldiers standing guard at the temple spread out in front of the Bronze Saint and held him at spear point. "Halt right there, you red-eyed punk! This is the sacred House of Aries. You may not go through us!" warned the captain. "I don't care if you're a Bronze Saint. Only Gold Saints and those living under the protection of the Houses can go through here, Pegasus Lance!"

The Bronze Saint gritted teeth in frustration. He was a tall, sixteen years old young man with black hair whose most distinctive feature was the blood red color of his sharp eyes. He carried the Pegasus Cloth Box on his back. While most of Sanctuary's unarmored Saints wore trainers or the sort, Lance sported a casual red t-shirt, jeans and a set of bandages wrapped around his hands and forearms that were worn due to his harsh training regimen.

"Look, just get the hell out of my way, okay? The Pope can't just take the Silver Cloth I just won away, tell me he's going to discuss my future with the Gold Saints and then just make me wait out here in the dark!" Lance protested. He stepped forward but the foot soldiers just closed in their spears on him a bit more. "…You have five seconds to stop pointing those things at me. I've done nothing wrong yet."

One of the foot soldiers lost it. "Screw this! He put my friend in the hospital! This violent punk deserves to be in jail!" He then rushed ahead at the Saint with a sword in hand. "Take this!

"NO, YOU FOOL!" shouted the captain.

Lance's red eyes followed the sword swing, reading its trajectory. He side stepped to dodge the diagonal slash and, when the foot soldiers tried to recover, Lance instantly hit him in the chest with a punch that shattered his armor before kicking him back to his friends. The foot soldier screamed and was caught by his friends, who stepped away from the Bronze Saint.

Lance narrowed his eyes and crackled his knuckles. "If you want a fight, you got it!"

The captain raised his hand at him. "N-no, wait!"

Lance charged his white colored cosmos and swung his arm at the foot soldiers. They raised their guard and screamed in fear. Lance was about to smash the regiment with his punch when someone behind the Saint shouted. "Wait, stop, Lance!" The very familiar sound of rattling chains was then heard before something wrapped itself around Lance's forearm. The metal chain became tense, stopping Lance's punch.

Lance's red eyes narrowed in frustration and looked over his shoulder to confront the person who interfered. "Shinta? What are you doing here?!"

The foot soldiers opened their eyes to see the shocking sight of Lance stopped in his tracks by the metallic chain belonging to the green haired feminine-looking Saint next to Pegasus. Andromeda Shinta waited until Lance relaxed his attacking arm to release his friend. "I came after you because I was worried you'd get in trouble trying to get inside the Temples. _Nissan_, please don't start a fight. I'm sure we can get inside if we just explain your situation."

Lance scoffed as he watched the thirteen years old Andromeda Saint retract his chain and wrap it around his own pink forearm guard. "Shinta, first, I think I told you not to call me that in public. It's embarrassing and _we're not actually brothers._ Second, they're the ones who started the fight! I was just teaching them the error of their ways. If we don't pay people back, they'll never learn and keep coming back at you."

Shinta seemed horrified by this, widening his green eyes for a moment at his comrade. However, he then smiled at him, being absolutely sure that Lance meant no real harm with his line of thinking. "Even so, Lance, you know I just don't like fights." He then headed for the foot soldier captain. "I'm sorry. Lance was just trying to get in because he's very worried about whatever the Gold Saints are discussing about him. Can we get inside? We promise we won't break the rules and be always under someone's watch."

The captain composed himself, but he found himself hesitating to answer due to the fact that he couldn't stop staring at the contrast between the two friends. Not only Lance was a good chunk taller than the Andromeda Saint, but their looks were completely different as well. Shinta had long, curly green hair, emerald eyes and delicate face features that, if it wasn't for the fact that Shinta was wearing no mask, would have the captain believe he was talking to a girl. His soft voice didn't help the matter, either.

Even so, the captain stood firm. "I'm sorry, Saint Shinta, but I cannot allow either of you to get through. As I explained to your…_friend_, you guys just don't have the authority to go inside."

Shinta frowned. "Oh, I see. Thank you, anyway."

"Please, leave this staircase. You guys have already caused enough trouble." The captain then had his guards stand tall next to the door.

"But, I-"

Lance grabbed Shinta's shoulder and dragged him out of there. "Come on, Shinta, they won't let us through." When they left the stairs, the two friends stopped by the entrance to Sanctuary Town. Lance sighed. "Shinta, I told you to stay in town, didn't I?"

Shinta covered his head. "I'm sorry, Lance, I didn't mean to make you angry, It's just that I was really worried. I had this feeling you'd get in trouble with the foot soldiers or the Saints. You always do."

Lance's eyes rolled. "I don't _always_ get into trouble with them, besides that's my problem!"

"Yes, and I accept that! My Mom always told me I should leave people alone when they say that sort of thing, but… I just couldn't help myself." He saw Lance sat on a bench nearby and fold his arms. "You've worked really hard for the Silver Cloth. When the Pope took it away from you because you needed further evaluation, I thought you'd do something crazy. I'm sorry, Lance…"

Lance sighed once more. "It's alright, Shinta, you don't have to feel sorry for every little thing. I know you had good intentions. I just wished you'd toughen up a bit more and quit worrying about me." Lance explained. "I mean, we've met a year and a half ago and we've done nothing but dangerous missions together since then and you're still so…innocent, you know?"

Shinta's face went red. Lance was right. If there was one thing both Lance and Master had always berated him was for being so clingy and pure-hearted. "I could try to be less innocent if you want me to, Lance. I've always really hated when people would call me a wimp or think I'm a girl but I've always been this way. I've always wanted to just help people, not to fight." Shinta saw Lance seemingly ignoring him, lost in his own little world. Lance was really good at hiding his emotions. He was smart, too. Shinta could bet the Pegasus Saint was thinking deeply about something. "Do you think… that the Gold Saints are talking about demoting you, Lance?"

Lance's red eyes turned to the Golden Zodiac's thirteenth temple, the one where the Pope resided. He thought about how the whole thing started. "He called this weird meeting because of my match with the Heracles Saint. I thought I did really well but then he just took my Kentaurus Silver Cloth away after all I went through to deserve it. Shinta, they had you interviewed, right? What did you tell them?"

Shinta quickly shook his head. "Oh, don't worry, Lance. I didn't say anything personal or anything you wouldn't like me to talk about. I tried to be as truthful as I could but I also said you were a good person who deserves the Kentaurus Silver Cloth." However, Lance only seemed further preoccupied. Shinta's eyes softened. He hugged his friend in a desperate attempt to comfort him. "Don't worry, Lance. I know for sure they'll do the right thing."

Lance felt a bit touched by Shinta's words, but he then pushed Andromeda off him. "Get off me, you pansy!" he tried joking.

Shinta smirked. It was nice to see Lance a bit up lifted. "They'll judge you fairly, Lance, I'm sure of it."

Lance's red eyes stared at Andromeda. "_Judge me fairly, huh? Considering my past and what they think I've done, I'm afraid that's exactly what they'll do."_ he thought.

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"I think we are rushing into things, though." confessed Kirin, the Gold Saint of Capricorn of the time. "We can't just award him a Gold Cloth just like this!"

_"_Your Holiness, I believe myself as an optimistic person, but I agree with Kirin._" _said Taurus Daniel. "He doesn't even have a proper Saint's education! He's defiant to his superiors and he's uneducated in proper Sainthood. His fight with Saint Kerberos two years ago is enough proof of that."

"What do you mean?" asked a young Sagittarius Aiolos, intrigued. "I've heard a lot about Lance, but I don't really know his story."

"Me neither. Is he a bad guy?" asked Mu. He then turned to Saga and realized the blue-haired Saint and Lance would be neighbors if Pegasus became a Gold Saint. "I guess that'd be alright. You'd be able to handle him, right, Saga?"

Saga smirked. "Of course, he may be strong, but he's not trained in the same way we are, Mu."

_"_According to the files on Kentaurus Lance, or Pegasus Lance as he's better known,_"_ answered Capricorn Kirin "he was sentenced at the age of ten to be sent to the training grounds on Mount Olympus to obtain the Pegasus Bronze Cloth within eight years under the penalty of death._"_

Saga widened his eyes. "Why? Also, isn't the usual timespan for the Path of the Bronze Cloth just six years?"

"The actual name of the punishment is Jason's Exile and it is used to teach unruly trainees a lesson in humbleness. Essentially, the trainee is sent to a B-level Training Ground and given a Master for fifteen days. If by the end of those days the Master sees that the trainee hasn't learnt his lesson, the penalty is applied." explained Aquarius Malta. "The penalty is that you must take the Path of the Cloth on your own with an eight year deadline."

"What if you go beyond the deadline? What then?"

Malta glanced at the Pope and then back at the three young Gold Saints. "You are executed."

Aiolos gulped. "I see…" He then decided to ask something else. "Just out of curiosity, why was Mount Olympus chosen?"

Shion answered this one. "The reason why was actually never recorded. When he was sentenced, a seer from the Virgo Temple was sent to the Sanctuary-sponsored orphanage he was in to determine if he was born under the protection of a constellation. I'm not sure what she concluded from her session with him, though. All that it is known is that a couple of days later Lance was shipped to Mount Olympus, where the Pegasus Temple resides in."

"The Master chosen for him was Kerberos Kastiel, one of the few Silver Saints available for the job at the time." added the Capricorn Saint. "Fifteen days after the start of training, Saint Kastiel made his decision about Lance."

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**Six years earlier (1970), in Mount Olympus**

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Kastiel walked out of the small, stone house located in the tree-filled bottom of one of the valleys of Mount Olympus. Behind him, ten year old, Lance desperately tried to keep up with him, "Master Kastiel, wait!" he cried out. Kastiel stopped and turned around, facing Lance, who caught up with him and also stopped, panting. The Silver Saint narrowed his eyes, irritated. Lance rested his hands on his knees and panted repeatedly. "Where are you going, Master?"

Kastiel frowned a little. "I'm going back to Sanctuary. From now on, you're on your own, kid!"

"What?!" Lance stared at the Silver Saint for a bit, who seemed to be dead serious "B-but, you can't leave me here! Master I-"

"Don't call me that! I never recognized you as my student!" Kastiel interrupted, raising his finger. "You had two weeks to prove yourself humble enough to deserve my teaching. You failed to demonstrate that, Lance, so I'm leaving!"

Lance widened his gaze, eyes misty, visibly hurt by Kastiel's harsh words. Lance struggled to contain his tears, looking at his feet to avoid the eye contact with the Silver Saint. Kastiel rolled his eyes. He had a very strong suspicion that Lance had abandonment issues, which was most likely a result of the years Lance spent in the Athenian orphanage where he was found.

Lance's true origin was no big mystery. It was known that he was born in Athens. However, his parents suffered a horrible accident in the streets of the Greek Capital. The damage to their bodies causing them to become completely unrecognizable and it was before they could even register Lance's existence or even give him a name. As a result, there was doubt regarding Lance's true ascendancy. Though born in Greece, the nameless child's parents could also have been foreigners, after all. Most Greek Purists in Sanctuary didn't take kindly to foreign trainees.

Lance, miraculously, survived, completely unharmed. The boy was then taken to a catholic orphanage, where he would endure ten years of complete lack of healthy social relationships, shunned by the other children due to his red eyes and under the care of neglectful staff. Even the name Lance was given to him by the Silver Saint who found him and brought him to the Sanctuary, claiming he saw potential in the boy to become a Saint of Athena, while in the orphanage they simply called him Little Red as an allusion to the unusual color of his eyes.

The lack of any kind of direct affection or fixed identity, both in the orphanage and within the Sanctuary, caused Lance to develop a shy, unruly personality, and the resulting psychological marks were causing Lance to be in denial towards the idea of Kastiel abandoning him in that mountain, despite having already warned him two weeks before, when they first got there.

However, Kastiel, despite the boy's complicated childhood, didn't have any kind of particular affection towards Lance. There were too many orphans to count back in Sanctuary. In fact, he was eager to leave the mountain and Lance on his own as soon as possible.

"I already told you when we first got here!" continued Kastiel "I would teach you the basics of cosmos, survival and personal training and, after that, I would leave if you didn't learn your lesson!"

"But..." muttered Lance, eyes shadowed, fists trembling, a tear falling down his cheek. Even in Sanctuary people just seemed anxious to get rid of him. "You can't just do this to me! You can't just leave me here in this cold mountain filled with wolves!"

"I'm leaving! You have eight years, remember? That's two years more than most trainees due to Jason's Exile's rules. You must unlock your cosmos once and for all, beat the temple's challenge and get the Pegasus Cloth or you die!"

Lance stood silent for a moment. He then wiped the single tear that fell down his cheek, not wanting to cry in front of the Silver Saint, and looked up, facing Kastiel with narrowed eyes. "Fine...Leave! I don't need you! I'll get the Cloth of Pegasus..." he then looked over his shoulder. "I'll show you! I'll show everyone that I don't need anyone's help! Everyone just keeps abandoning me anyway! Why would I need _your_ help?" Lance then turned his back on the man and folded his arms, furiously pouting.

Kastiel squinted at him. "That is exactly the kind of attitude that got you into this mess. Don't you get it, Lance? I could choose to stay here. I could choose to ignore the punishment Sanctuary gave you for being such a stuck-up brat and train you past the two weeks the Silvers decided to offer you. But you...You just ask for this!" Kastiel spat. "Don't kid yourself, Lance. Even _if_ you _do_ survive the training and get strong enough to move the temple's statue, you'll still have to pass the temple's challenge, something that no one has yet to do alone in over two hundred years! Just give up!"

Lance staggered, as he felt like he was being stabbed by Kastiel's sharp words. No one, not even Kastiel, ever had any faith in him.

"You WILL die, Lance!" continued Kastiel "If the training or the bandits don't kill you, the challenge will! Who the hell do you think you are to be so arrogant? You're no better than any other kid that you trained with back in the Sanctuary!...The Silver Saint who brought you to Sanctuary didn't name _you_, Lance,… he named your tomb!"

With these words, Kastiel left, leaving behind Lance, who was holding back a dam full of angry tears. Lance went inside the house, closing the wooden door behind him with a harsh bang, and sat on his poorly constructed bed, failing to hold the dam any longer.

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**Present…**

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Aiolos and Mu widened their eyes. The Lemurian child turned to his Master, the Pope. "Master, is this true? Saint Kastiel really left him there to die?" Shion nodded at him. "That's terrible!"

"Actually, it's quite normal." commented Aquarius Malta, unmoved by the story. "In fact, I support Saint Kastiel's decision. All Saints are put to these kinds of standards and tests. Character is extremely important in a Saint. In some Training Grounds, such as Andromeda Island, Masters are required to kill their trainees in many of their tests in case of failure." A look of shock filled Mu's face. "You have just been sheltered from all of this by your special promotion conditions, but Kastiel was just doing his job."

Saga saw Aiolos and Mu holding their tongue in shocked silence and decided to intervene. "That may be true, Saint Malta. The three of us have not followed the traditional Path of the Bronze Cloth." he admitted. "However, from what I've learned, the killings are only required in advanced tests, well past the third or fourth year of training, or when the trainee demonstrates truly abhorrent behavior such as murdering the _competition_. You're not telling me that abandoning an underachieving Saint who was yet to unlock his cosmos in a B level Training Ground to fend for himself isn't worse than that, are you?"

Shion chuckled when he saw Malta at loss for words. "Well said, Saga! All our Masters have been very kind to us and tolerated many of our mistakes. You yourself, Malta, have done terrible mistakes with the powers your teacher taught you to use and he never abandoned you, did he?"

Malta scoffed. "Maybe not, your Holiness… but Jason's Exile has strict rules and the point to retain from all of this is that Lance failed to abide by them."

The Pope nodded. "Correct. It's precisely because of these things, and more that will be mentioned in this meeting, that I simply had to summon you all here," Shion said. He joined hands behind his back and contemplated Hecate's words. He wished he could tell the Gold Saints the reason he had faith in Lance, but he had made the mistake of talking about Hecate's prophecy and the distant past to justify his actions before and he has lived to regret this deeply.

Shion saw the Gold Saints exchanging glances with these words. He knew they were aware of the risk it was to give Lance such a chance. Even the three younger ones were starting to realize that they needed to learn more about the Pegasus Saint in order to properly decide. The Pope waved his hand, causing the Cancer Pandora Box to emerge from behind the curtains and be placed in the middle of them via telekinesis.

The Gold Saints all stared at the golden, cubic box with the engraved crab, Karkinos, on its front face for a while. "Pegasus Lance's fate is in our hands, Gold Saints of Athena. Whether he joins us or remains a troubled Bronze Saint is entirely up to us." Shion reminded them. "Before we decide if he's worthy of the Gold, however, we should look at the past and see how he was worthy of the Bronze!"

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**Chapter end**

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**Next Chapter: **Pegasus

**Description: **Lance's final moments in Mount Olympus are recalled by the Gold Saints and Lance himself. Back then, young Lance had been told by Kastiel that he had to overcome an obstacle to prove his strength to the Pegasus, but he had no idea what it was.

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_Author Note: The story that is Lance's Role is the result of several failed attempts at fanfiction writing and a rapidly evolving idea regarding a group of original characters in the Saint Seiya universe. The original manifesto is still in my room, written in pencil, but is wildly different from the story you'll be reading in many aspects and I've written other stuff, too, but this is simply the fic that had me invest more of my imagination into._

_If you are expecting romance, there will be, but only in a later stage of the story and I will very unlikely write anything 'yaoi' or 'yuri'. Regarding pairings between canon characters, I will try to follow what is the most general consensus among the fans while remaining faithful to the original story, rather than follow my personal taste._

_The choice of it being a 'Saint Seiya' fanfic came from several factors, the main one being how unfulfilled of a story I always thought Kurumada's series to be. Not only it is incomplete, but its timeline has a lot of space for original ideas, so I was able to create a lot more in the Saint Seiya universe than in the others._

_Evens from both the Next Dimension and Lost Canvas series will be taken in account. There will be a compromise between the two, as well as between the manga and anime differences. For example, Asgard will exist, but so will much of what was not shown in the anime from the manga's story. _

_Anyway, thank you for your patience and support. I work very hard on this story and I hope you enjoy Lance's Role, a shounen-style fanfiction story._


	2. 1A: Pegasus

Notable OCs up until now that I own: Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation;

Notable Original concept (until now): Sanctuary Town; Pegasus Temple;

Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic: Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic: 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography

Author notes:

**Old readers:** You've most likely been notified of the revamp via the Story Alert function of the site, meaning that you only received a notification that I've posted a new chapter, this one. This is due to the posting method that I chose in order to allow me to re-post the chapters without deleting the story altogether. Please check the first chapter to find out what is going on and read the revamped LR from the start.

Please enjoy and review.

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_"His Cloth used to be Pegasus; that is true, Seiya, but he got it in a slightly different manner than you did and he surrendered it to Sanctuary's possession when he finally stopped using it for good. I remember him saying that he doesn't miss it anymore, but I can see in his eyes that that's bullshit. After all, you never forget your first Cloth, no matter how much you progress past it."_

_-_20th century's Taurus Aldebaran, to Pegasus Seiya

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Shion waved his hands over the Cancer Gold Cloth. "Pegasus Lance has been a Bronze Saint for two years already. Two years ago, four years after being abandoned in Mount Olympus to die, he returned to Sanctuary against all odds after only half the time limit had expired. The underachieving trainee survived all the perils of the mountain and fulfilled the Path of the Bronze Cloth without the help of his would be Master, Kastiel." He then turned to the three younger Gold Saints. "As said before, you two had special promotion conditions so you are not fully aware of what this entails, do you?"

Saga and Aiolos shook their heads. "I'm aware that the different ranks of Cloths have different requirements, but I do not know the details, your Holiness." said Aiolos.

"Oh, I do! I do!" Mu shouted, raising his hand into the air. He has worked with broken Cloths for a while so he had insight his two seniors did not. His Master gave him permission to explain. "In order for you to be able to wear a cloth, you have to be under the protection of its constellation. Everybody's born under a zodiacal constellation, but at any instance of your life, you may also be under the protection of a Bronze and Silver one. You just can't have two of the same level, such as being protected by Pegasus AND Bear. This why Saints can suffer promotions and demotions in level of the Cloth."

Shion clapped his hands. "Correct, very good, Mu!" He praised, giving Mu just cause for a sheepish smile. "While, sometimes, you are also born under the protection of a Bronze or Silver Constellation, most people are only born with the zodiacal one."

Aiolos widened his eyes. "Oh, is that so? That's interesting. But why are some people born with Bronze and Silver while most are not?"

Taurus Daniel explained this one. "The cause of that may vary greatly, Aiolos. Most philosophers agree that you can inherit the protection from family ties or, and take this with a grain of salt, from your _previous reincarnation_. For example, you could be born under the protection of Pegasus because your father was the Saint of it or because," Daniel then cleared his throat, as he was a bit skeptic of his next few words "well, because you were the Saint of it in a previous life."

Shion smiled inside his mask. Reincarnation was a subject of heavy debate in Sanctuary. Many historians and members of the Golden Zodiac, especially of the Virgo temple, argued ferociously over whether or not reincarnation among humans and the tendency of the two lives being very similar was real. As his eyes locked on Saga and Aiolos, who Hecate had predicted to be the returned Asmita and Sisyphus, Shion could only believe it to be real.

Taurus Daniel continued. "Like the Pope said before, a seer was sent to Saint Lance's orphanage to see if he was born under a Bronze or Silver Constellation through their special spiritual techniques and rituals. It has also been proven that psychological tests can give you a hint to what your constellation is, so some Masters figure out what is the best Path of The Cloth for their students just by getting to know them really well." He then placed his hand on his chest. "For example, when I was a kid, many decades ago, I was told to be under the protection of the Bear Constellation so I took its path, but later on, I managed to become the Whale Silver Saint, too, even though I didn't have its protection. Do you know how?"

Saga figured it out immediately. "Other constellations outside of the zodiac take you under their wing when you complete their Paths if you weren't born under it?"

Taurus nodded. "Exactly, however, constellations have a life of their own. They have opinions and standards regarding your personality and desires. You must live up to those standards or the Cloth may decide to abandon you." Saga felt alarmed all of a sudden with this. Did the Gemini Cloth also expect something from him? Taurus Daniel saw the worried look in his eyes and chuckled. "Ha, ha, ha! Don't worry, Saga! I'm sure the three of you will have no problem keeping your Cloths happy."

Saga seemed to relax, but Aiolos folded his arms when a question filled his mind. "Doesn't this mean that you can switch your Bronze and Silver constellation for a new set?"

Aquarius Malta nodded. "Unless under special circumstances, Bronze Cloths usually require you to have a six years' worth of training and the completion of the tests they set out for you in the respective Training Ground. Silver Cloths usually only require three. If you are willing to take those years of training all over again under the guidance of the new constellation you want to follow, then yes, you may."

Capricorn Kirin, however, then explained something important. "But Aiolos, that would be the same as betraying your constellation, wouldn't it? It's an extremely dishonorable thing to do. It would be like swearing allegiance to a new Master just because you didn't like the old one. The old Master would consider you a traitor and the new one would distrust you."

"Kirin is right. The Path of the Cloth is a sacred journey that will test your principles and determination as a Saint. Turning your back on it for another one of the same level is one of the worst things you could do as a Saint in the eyes of the Cloths."

"So was Lance judged to be under the Pegasus Cloth's protection?" asked Aiolos.

"We don't know what the seer concluded. Jason's Exile's rules, however, stipulate that you are sent to an empty Training Ground of difficulty level B or lower and Mount Olympus was the only one available at the time" reminded the Pope.

"But your Holiness, if Saint Lance has been placed under the protection of the Pegasus Constellation, since he _has_ obtained the respective armor, doesn't it mean that the Pegasus Cloth deemed him to be a worthy Saint?"

Shion had his reservations about this. During the past Holy War with Hades, that demonic God who finally brought down Tenma had done it so brutally that the Pegasus Cloth had been traumatized by the experience and lost all of its godly power. Shion still remembered repairing the shattered Pegasus God Cloth into its base form and realizing that the wild, ambitious spirit of the Pegasus Cloth had turned into a weak, fragile steed too afraid of opposing its would-be Masters.

"Unfortunately, Aiolos, due to the damage it sustained during the last Holy War," the Pope said "the Pegasus Cloth has been deemed unfit to judge trainees properly. Because of that, I returned it to the Pegasus Temple and asked a certain spirit to act as its guardian. That spirit has been judging the trainees in Mount Olympus ever since."

"So you're saying that Lance's promotion to bronze is no immediate guarantee of his character?" asked Saga.

Shion nodded. "I'm afraid so. Only Athena, Lance and the Pegasus Cloth themselves know what actually happened inside that temple two years ago and what Pegasus' guardian concluded about trainee Lance. Moreover, there's also the fact that Lance trained without a Master to instill morals and discipline in him."

"As a result of this experience, Lance has become a lone wolf." added Taurus Daniel. "Until he was assigned to work with Saint Shinta, he took his missions alone and had no friends among the Saints. Many antagonized him for his encounter with Kastiel after he obtained the Pegasus Cloth, too, and for the violence he was a part of within Sanctuary against his own peers."

Aquarius Malta nodded. "Gold Saints are not loners. They are comrades fighting under the name of Athena. The reason fighting among them is prohibited is not limited to the destruction they can cause to themselves and others. Even if we accept him as a lone wolf, someone like that who disrespects the value of unity cannot and should not be treated as one of us."

Capricorn Kirin then concluded. "Our generation of Gold Saints fought valiantly against many threats before the three of you were even born, and we have a firm belief that we only survived because we stayed united, not apart. You can ask any half-decent captain, and they'll tell you that rogue elements in any military unit are a liability. Do not overlook Lance's attitude."

The three older Gold Saints then kept quiet for a while with these words and Shion seemed to grow a bit somber too. The three younger Gold Saints kept staring at them for a while, wondering what they were thinking about.

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**Chapter 2**

**First Arc**

**Episode 2**

**Pegasus**

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**Two years before, early January of 197****4**** in Mount Olympus**

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Inside the cabin he had spent four years of his life, trainee Lance put on his red shirt, tied the bandages around his forearms and hands and listened to the wind blowing strongly on the outside, spreading the snow and the cold. Lance's red eyes turned to the broken mirror on his wall. Standing almost six feet tall and with a completely different muscle size, he no longer recognized the kid Kastiel abandoned in the cold eyed, hardened teenager that stared back at him.

He spent about a minute looking at his front door, gathering his courage to go outside and face his challenge. Thinking about the four years he had spent there, running away from the animals, particularly the wolves, the cold and even the occasional bandit or Black Saint trying to harass Sanctuary by taking over the place, his eyes narrowed, for he realized he had had enough of it.

He opened the door and faced the snowy field and setting sun.

Normally, he wouldn't think of going outside at such an hour, especially during the winter, due to his cryophobia. Years in that cold mountain had been absolute torture to him as he was forced to endure cold nights and cruel snowstorms in an attempt to survive. As he rushed through the rocky ground as fast as he could, he tried not to think about the snow he was stepping in. However, the harsher parts of the winter would come that month and Lance didn't want to be around once more to face it.

After a while of sprinting at superhuman speed and leaping around obstacles and rocks, he reached the highest spot of the Training Ground. Mount Olympus was actually divided into _Steps of a staircase_. What normal people saw as Mount Olympus, the three kilometer high Mountain amongst eleven other rocky peaks, was but the first 'Step' to it. The 'staircase', however, was said to have another one thousand 'steps' invisible to the normal eye, each one only accessible through secret passage on the highest peak of the last _step_. It was probably accurate to say that the real Mount Olympus consisted of a thousand secret mountains stacked on top of the first step.

Lance's Training Ground was simply the second step of the mountain and Sanctuary's control was said to only stretch itself to the third or fourth one. All the other ones above belonged to the Gods, each with increasingly difficult conditions, so much that it was said not even Gold Saints could make it past the fiftieth or so.

Lance halted his march. At the highest spot of the second Step, an upwards rocky road circulated the peak until reaching the top, where the secret passage to the Third step would be. But Lance didn't need to go any further for along the path, dug into the mountain's side, was the Pegasus Temple's entrance.

Even with the setting sun blasting its light on it, it looked dark, decayed and foreboding. The marble of its pillars, ramp and entablature was darkened by time and filled with cracks and dead vines. The entablature itself featured Ancient Greek style images of Greek warriors battling each other for a box in the middle with a horse head biting on a handle on its front face. Below that image, an inscription was engraved in Ancient Greek.

"'_Would you die for your dreams as I have done?'_" Lance read to himself. "'_If your will is strong and your path is clear to you, tread upon this Temple without fear. If not, then may the unforgiving Plain of Aleion claim your miserable life_…what the hell? Who wrote that?"

Lance's red eyes stared at the inscription. However, they then picked up the light of the sun setting itself. Conditions in the second Step were much harsher than in the first one. At night, the negative temperatures reached critical levels. Lance groaned and rushed inside the temple to take over.

Once inside, however, he felt his foot stepping on something stony that caved inside the ground under his weight. Lance widened his eyes as he heard the sound of stone mechanisms working within the walls of the temples. "SHIT! A trap!" he cursed, turning around, but too late as the stardust reinforced door of rock slid down the entrance, crashed with the floor and locked him inside the Temple. The room was enveloped in darkness as the only source of light had been blocked before Lance could find a torch. Lance's fists blindly banged on the stone block that trapped him in. "NO!" he shouted. Lance took a deep breath to calm himself down. "What am I going to do now? I can't see anything in this dark."

All of a sudden, two flames around him lit up; illuminating the corridor he was in. Lance's eyes widened as he watched more pairs of torches lit up one by one along the corridor's length. The trainee sighed in relief. For a moment, he thought he had doomed himself by coming to that temple. His eyes analyzed the stone door that locked him in. It had a cubic slot where a Cloth box could probably fit inside. Maybe all he needed was the Pegasus Cloth Box as the stardust-reinforced stone would certainly absorb the strength of his cosmos punches.

His fist tightened in anger and he cursed Kastiel, the man who abandoned him. He had only told him that the Temple would have a challenge, but he gave no details. He didn't even hint towards the possibility of him not being able to leave the Temple without the Cloth. As Lance walked along the corridor towards the innards of the Temple he vowed to obtain the Pegasus Cloth whatever the cost, even if it maimed him or worse.

The corridor led him to a large, long room supported by two lines of pillars along the walls. More torches lit up, also fully illuminating this room. The walls were dark and dusty and the air was quite humid and cold. Lance's body trembled involuntary with the low temperature and he hugged himself as he walked along the walls. He then realized that there were pictures engraved on the stone walls between the pillars.

The first couple of pictures were nothing really interesting. The depicted mostly the myth of Pegasus, such as its birth from Medusa's blood, Perseus riding it towards Andromeda Island and Bellerophon taming it and using it to try to climb all the Steps of Olympus.

However, the pictures started depicting Saints of Pegasus and Lance found himself intrigued by them. The first ones showed battles with Specters and Mariners, but eventually, he started running into larger engravings of a man wearing celestial armor fighting what looked like a depiction of Hades.

Lance stepped close to the last picture, the one at the end of the room. "_A dead end?_" he asked himself before analyzing the image. It showed three figures. One was the man in Celestial armor in the right unleashing what looked like meteors from his fist. Another was a man on the left wearing a set of armor he did not recognize, though it covered him fully like a Gold Cloth and featured a right forearm shaped like a Chinese dragon, while Athena, the third figure, watched over the fight from above.

Lance then sensed a concentrated cosmos behind the walls. He widened his eyes and his heart started beating faster as he recalled having sensed the same coming from Cloth Boxes. Realizing that the Pegasus Cloth Box was standing behind the picture, he stepped back and charged his white cosmos.

"Yes! This is it!" he excitedly proclaimed. He then charged forward and punched the wall. Upon impact, however, there was a burst of light and Lance screamed as he was shocked and projected backwards. The trainee fell backwards on the stone floor, rolling around several times before stopping himself. He coughed and picked himself back up. "W-what?! What happened?"

"Do you wish to obtain the Pegasus Cloth?" someone suddenly asked. Lance watched as the image of the three figures split right in the middle, opened up and moved out of the way, revealing a platform standing over an abyss with a cubic metal box being illuminated from above.

Lance stood up straight and locked eyes with the far away object, his mouth becoming agape. There it was, right in front of him, making his heart beat faster than ever and a warm feeling fill his guts, the Cloth he had dreamed for four years to obtain. "The…the Pegasus Cloth, I… YES! Yes, I want to!" he then shouted, though not sure of what was going on. "Who are you? Where are you speaking from?"

A strange, silver colored cloud started emerging in front of him from the abyss the Pegasus platform stood over. It moved around until it formed a vaguely humanoid shape with two eyes of bright white light. "Leave. You are not meant to obtain it."

Lance staggered. "What? What are you talking about?"

The fog started materializing itself. An image of a man started forming in front of the trainee, which then colored itself and seemed to become solid. He was a young adult with blonde, ear-length curly hair and deep blue eyes with a stern look on them. He wore sandals, protective pads on the knees down and a _chiton_, or ancient Greek clothing consisting of a sewn garment held on the shoulder and tied on the waist. He also wore leather protections around his forearms. "I am Bellerophon, the guardian of this Cloth. Two hundred years ago, the Pope came to me with a request to protect the Pegasus Cloth and through my astral projection, I have done so ever since."

Lance took a couple of second to process this. Standing before him was the spiritual representation of a mythical hero of Greece? Was this the challenge? "I can't leave this place! Not without that Cloth! What do you want with me? Why can't I have it?" he demanded to know.

Bellerophon folded his arms and looked down on the trainee. He knew the teen's story very well. He had watched him from the moment Saint Kerberos abandoned him. "The Path of the Cloth usually takes six years; you are brave to seek Pegasus' test in just four. What makes you think you deserve it so much and so soon, trainee Lance?" he asked, shocking the teen by knowing his name. "Why should I let you pass?"

Lance narrowed his eyes. Was his character being tested or something? "I have spent four miserable years in this mountain because of it. I have almost died more times than I could count. I've overcome all odds by unlocking my cosmos just for this moment." He recalled. A thin aura of white light started forming around him as he burned his cosmos. "There's no fucking way I'll leave this mountain without it, not after all I've been put through. Get out of my way, you ghost. You're not going to be the one who'll stop me from achieving my objective."

Bellerophon suddenly laughed out loud. "Objective, you say? Do you think you can take the Pegasus Cloth by force just for those reasons?" Bellerophon started emanating a silvery aura of cosmos. Lance didn't answer. "So you're pulling the strong, silent type act, huh? Not something I've seen other Saints of Pegasus do before. And those eyes filled with hatred for being abandoned here on this mountain to die…yes, you're definitely not meant to be protected by Pegasus."

Lance leaped forward with a fist full of cosmos. "Get out of my way!"

Bellerophon unfolded his arms. "I can see that you will not relent no matter what I say. Very well, just for you, I'll unleash a millionth of my power through this projection!" He then also charged forward and cocked his fist.

Both trainee and hero let out a battle cry and let their fists crash against each other, unleashing a powerful vibration and thunderous sound that made the room shake. Lance's teeth gritted in effort as he held his own against the projection, realizing that the 'ghost' was more powerful than he thought. Lance pulled back his fist only to then caught Bellephoron's. The spirit tried to punch him with his other one but it was also caught by Lance's other hand, initiating a power hold between the two.

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**Lance**

**Strength: 6  
Skill: 5  
Mind: 5  
Spirit: 4  
Violence: 7**

**V****ersus **

**B****ellerophon**

**Strength: 8  
Skill: unknown  
Mind: unknown  
Spirit: unknown  
Violence: unknown**

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Lance's muscles tensed and he felt his hands being crushed by the hero's fingers, but held his own. Bellerophon smiled. "Good, you got strength." Bellerophon then let go of Lance's hands and rushed his leg forward in a side kick. Lance leaned forward to dodge below it before striking the hero's back with an elbow blow. There was a swift hand swipe that made Lance step back and be placed on the defensive when several other punched followed.

Lance focused his cosmos in his forearms and watched carefully as Bellerophon's fists rushed back and forth. The spirit didn't seem to be fighting seriously. This scared the trainee because he was having a hard time finding an opening, but didn't let himself show it to his foe. He kept his defense up for a while until he detected a punch that was cocked a bit further back by his foe for a heavier blow. Seeing his opening, Lance rushed at him and dodge it with a sidestep while striking the spirit's leg with his foot. Bellerophon widened his eyes and stumbled forward, but Lance's spinning back hand blow struck his stomach to stop his descent. Lance positioned himself carefully, roared loudly and finished his combo with a powerful sidekick that crashed with the spirit's face so hard Bellerophon's body was lifted into the air and floored face first.

Lance panted and stepped back several times. He got lucky and was able to time his blows well; otherwise, the larger foe would have broken his combo. As expected, he watched the astral projection get back on its feet without much effort.

"Good, you got skill, too." complimented the spirit. "But that's not enough, Lance. That just means you'd be a strong warrior. Black Saints are strong, too, you know? Your Master must have told you about them."

Lance stopped panting and narrowed his eyes fiercely. "...I have no master!" he snarled.

Bellerophon took note of the hatred in Lance's voice. He must stop this trainee from becoming a Saint. "He took you under his wing, didn't he? You wouldn't have gotten this strong if it wasn't-"

"Saint Kerberos Kastiel taught me the basics of fighting and surviving and then left me here _to die_. I forged my strength by my own hand, not his!"

"I see. So you hate Kastiel-"

"STOP TALKING ABOUT HIM!" Lance shouted as he crossed the distance between them and struck Bellerophon's blocking wrists with a powerful punch.

The hero brushed off the blow and caught Lance by the throat, paralyzing him with the strength of his grip. Lance's eyes shut tightly with the pain. He grabbed the hero's wrists and punched them repeatedly to try to loosen the grip.

Bellerophon watched him squirm. "Your heart is filled with rage and hatred. You have no desire to be a Saint! You're nothing like Tenma, who wished to save his loved ones. You just want the power of the Pegasus Cloth for yourself! Even if you were to get past me…even if, by some miracle, the Pegasus Cloth would decide to take you under its protection…you would just lead it astray."

Lance's eyes opened up. "T-Tenma?" He looked down on the hero. "Whatever, just shut up and let go of me!"

Instead, Bellerophon pinned Lance harshly against the floor by the throat, still applying pressure to it. "Hmph! Black Saints are traitors. They are scum who turn their back on Athena and use their power and armors for their selfish purposes. Their strength and their skill used to kill rather than protect… take revenge rather than forgive... and one day you would most likely end up a Black Saint. The hatred you have for Kastiel and for the rest of the world ends today." Bellerophon raised is other hand. "You have led a miserable life, trainee Lance. The whole world abandoned you and you don't understand why. But don't worry, the end will be quick. I shall apply 'Athena's Mercy' on you, an execution technique created by Sanctuary, and you shall die a quick, painless death, forgotten inside this cold mountain _forever_." Bellerophon's hand then descended on the Saint to apply the famous execution move.

"NO!" he shouted. His feet burned with white cosmos and struck the hero's chest as hard as he could. Bellerophon screamed, releasing his grip on Lance, and his hand struck the ground instead as Lance rolled away from him.

The trainee didn't give the hero a chance to recover. He leaped towards the taller warrior and struck his face head on with a knee blow that stunned Bellerophon. The hero's cosmos burned to help him pull himself together, but he then felt several punches strike his stomach before a kick sent him crash through a pillar and against a wall.

Bellerophon coughed out blood and tried to get up, feeling his limbs complain with pain. He looked up to Lance and widened his eyes, "_his__ cosmos__!_"

Lance spread his feet a bit and waved his hands around as he focused loudly and made his white cosmos aura burn around his body, trying to shape the Pegasus Constellation with his hand movements. "Time to finish this!" he shouted as he stopped his hand movements and took his stance. He dragged his left foot forward and aimed his left hand at the hero while his other hand tightened next to his waist. His white aura burned up and filled both his legs and closed fist, encompassing the later in a concentrated orb of transparent energy "TAKE THIS!" he shouted as he suddenly dashed forward at superhuman speed. "**PEGASUS…**"

Bellerophon widened his eyes at the amount of cosmos and the speed Lance was using. "I'll stop you!" his arms then rushed forward to try to catch the trainee.

The enormous acceleration of Lance's movement, however, caused his body to shoot forward like a bullet past Bellerophon' hands. "**…CHARGE FIST!**"

The warrior's eyes opened wide and he screamed as an enormous, concentrated impact struck his chest to hard his whole body got pushed back against the wall by the trainee, crashing with rock and making him vomit blood. The thunderous sound of his back crashing through the mountain's interior resonated throughout the temple and his upper body fell forward on top of Lance's shoulder.

Lance panted, feeling the adult tremble on top of him in pain. He retracted his fist from the spot where he hit his foe, leaving being the bloody imprint of his knuckles. He stumbled back several times and watched as Bellerophon's trembling body dropped to its knees and hands. The Charge Fist was his signature move and it was relatively simple. He merely powered his legs with cosmos to charge straight ahead at his target with an enormous acceleration and hit him with a fist encompassed in a large amount of concentrated cosmos.

The large acceleration and the concentrated shape of the cosmos in his hand caused his punch to strike like a large bullet on his foe, usually being enough to bring down an opponent several times Bellerophon's size. "I'm… getting the Pegasus Cloth. You can't stop me…"

Bellerophon grabbed his stomach in pain. "T-that cosmos… Y-you're very powerful!" he then gasped and coughed out more blood. His body, however, started shining with renewed energy all of a sudden. Lance's eyes opened up in terror as Bellerophon picked himself back up with new strength, his energy suddenly doubling. The warrior looked up at Lance and wiped the blood off his lips with his fist. "You caught me completely by surprise with that move. Very well, I shall now use not one, not two, but _three_ millionths of my power!"

Lance stared at him in shock. "…W-what?!" Bellerophon smirked and charged his aura. Lance suddenly found himself in a shaking temple as his foe's silver aura triple in thickness and size.

"That attack wasn't bad, Lance… But it is just power; brute force that you've applied cosmos into." The hero said his voice with a hint of anger. "It's going to take more than that if you want the Pegasus Cloth! I've been watching over it for a long time and I know how it thinks. What makes you think you can ride the winged horse so easily?"

Lance felt the temple's shaking stop. He sweated nervously but tried to look strong. "You rode it!" Lance argued. "It can't be that hard to convince him to let me take it." Bellerophon ignored Lance and tightened his fists while closing his eyes for a bit. Lance saw his energy increasing once more. "_I have to stop him from charging his energy before he attacks again_" he thought. He took another stance and attacked first. "**Pegasus**…** Charge Fist**!" His body once more shot forward and he delivered a powerful straight punch to Bellerophon's chest that exploded in light upon impact.

The light faded away and Lance's red eyes widened in horror. His punch seemingly had no effect at all on his foe as he still had his eyes closed and his energy kept on rising. Bellerophon opened his eyes. "This ends now. **Pegasus**… **Meteor Fist**!" he shouted.

Bellerophon's aura suddenly burst into energy, namely meteors of light that struck the screaming trainee, battering all over his body and flooring him. Lance winced in pain on the floor and tried to open his eyes, but only saw a blur. "_W-what? What was that?_" He tried to get up, but started to cough out blood before he even got on his knee. "_He didn't even move his fists__;__ he just released his energy… I couldn't even analyze the technique._"

A foot suddenly stepped next to him. "**Pegasus Meteor Fist.**" Lance didn't even have time to react. He just saw light fill his vision and countless punches struck his body once more. The screaming Saint crashed against the floor once more. Bellerophon calmly walked towards him. "**Pegasus Meteor FIST**!" The floor Lance was lying on suddenly exploded into energy that shot him against the ceiling. Lance crashed against it before his body fell down. Before he even hit the floor, Bellerophon cocked back his punch. "I won't let you become a Saint. **PEGASUS METEOR FIST**!"

Before Lance even hit the ground, he got run over by the fourth barrage of punches of light that sent him spinning through the air, bruising his body all over. Limp like a corpse, he crashed on the floor and slide through it until reaching the edge of the abyss that the Pegasus platform stood over. His hand hanged over the massive hole. Lance's exhausted eyes opened up a bit and saw only darkness at the bottom before they closed again.

Bellerophon saw Lance seemingly lose consciousness. "I'm impressed. Just three barrages of the meteor fists should have been enough to kill you, but you survived _four_. But now, all it takes is a little push to send you over the edge. Good bye!" His aura flared up. "Wait, what?!" Bellephoron widened his eyes in shock. He saw Lance's body tremble in pain as it tried to move. "You can still move?!"

Lance felt his world shaking and his body screaming in pain in countless spots. He felt like every bone in his body was broken He tried to breathe deeply, but it hurt. His red eyes offered his foe a menacing glare that frightened Bellerophon. He stepped away from the abyss and faced him. "I-I'm not giving up!" he muttered.

Bellerophon's jaw dropped. "Impressive. I have to say, I just keep underestimating your energy." His eyes then spot light flashing around the Pegasus Cloth Box. "_Pegasus, are you reacting to his effort?_"

Lance tried to burn his cosmos. It eased his pain and helped him stand up with a little more dignity, but he was having a hard time concentrating. Bellerophon was striking so hard and so fast with his meteor fist that Lance couldn't even analyze it right.

"Why are you getting back up again?" asked Bellerophon. "Why don't you just give up?"

Lance grabbed his right arm, which was in particularly harsh pain. He thought about the four years he spent in that mountain and felt his eyes well up. "Because if I don't take that Cloth with me, this would have all have been for nothing!"

Bellerophon wasn't convinced. "Lance, you don't understand, do you? Your path is filled with resentment and bitterness. I'm sure that the first thing you'd do with that cloth would be using it to exact some sort of revenge. You'd live your life with violence and with violence thrown back at you as an answer by the world." He preached. He then looked once more at the Box behind Lance. "But Pegasus is different from you. Though he was born from violence, he wishes nothing like that. He'll only bow to the will of someone whose heart is as light as his feathers and whose ambition is clear and just. But your heart is heavy with anger and confusion. If you doubt me, then ask yourself this; what do you really want with it? Where do you want his wings to take you?"

Lance's eyes tried to stare at the warrior, but he saw several of him so he couldn't really focus. "I w-was dragged into Sanctuary by a S-Silver Saint I never even saw again. Athena, your Holy Wars and your ideals of justice and love; I don't care about any of it." He confessed. "I d-don't know what I want to do with my life, but I swear that no matter what, for all the shit you people put me through, I'm taking that Cloth and getting the fuck away from Sanctuary!"

Bellerophon shook his head in exasperation. "You're hopeless." He berated. The hero felt worried about Pegasus' flashing and decided to finish the trainee. "This time, you'll fall over the abyss for good. **Pegasus Meteor FIST**!" His aura once more exploded into countless meteors of light without his body even moving an inch.

Lance's red eyes saw the meteors rushing against him. He could barely move so an elaborate dodge wasn't an option and it was equally insane to attempt to block all those powerful punches in the state he was. He tightened his fists in determination. There was no way he'd give up.

His hand rushed forward. "**Pegasus Charge FIST**!" he attempted to shout. His closed hand crashed with the barrage of light in a desperate attempt to run through it, but something then rushed over his shoulder and crashed with the attack. An explosion of light followed and Lance's senses were taken out by the shock. His body fell forward, unconscious.

Bellerophon lowered the intensity of his cosmos and watched as the Cloth Box floated above the unconscious trainee. He groaned. The Cloth Box rested on the ground next to Lance. "_Stop it, Bellephoron, you've done enough!"_

The hero groaned. What was the steed doing now? "Pegasus, why do you choose to protect this trainee?!" he demanded to know. His hand swept to the side. "He doesn't deserve to wear you. He'll lead himself to the path of Black Sainthood and drag you with him unless you abandon him. Do you wish that for yourself?!" he confronted. "As your Saint, he's destined only to bring destruction to Sanctuary when you're meant for such higher things! You know that!"

Pegasus' voice hesitated. "_Yes, I do, but-_"

"Have you forgotten Tenma? Have you forgotten everything he sacrificed himself for?" Bellerophon interrupted him. "Have you forgotten that you are destined to stop Hades with his help?!"

Pegasus hesitated to answer. "_No, of course not… I will never forget Tenma._"

"Then why do you disrespect his sacrifice so much by replacing him with this… child?!" shouted the hero.

Once more, the Cloth Box took a pause before answering. "_He's strong, isn't he? I'm sure he can become a great Saint._" said Pegasus, referring to Lance. "_Deep inside all his anger, I think I see a good light. I know he can change his path to something grander, something better. Lance had it unfair. All he needs is a good person to guide him._"

Bellerophon sighed. "And who is that person, you?" he asked, but the Bronze Cloth did not answer. "From the moment you leave this temple, I will not be there to protect you, but if you mean your words, then I cannot stop you."

Inside its box, the Pegasus helmet raised a bit in surprise. "_Bellerophon, are you accepting my choice?_"

The hero folded his arms and stared at the unconscious trainee. He closed his eyes. "I sense something already watching over him, something filled with hatred bigger than his. If you take him under your protection, you'll be declaring war to that evil, too." he reminded Pegasus, but the Cloth didn't seem moved by this. "Fine, Pegasus, I accept your choice. From this moment forth, may your constellation watch over his fate." He then started fading away. His blue eyes looked down on the trainee. "Farewell, _Saint_ Lance, and remember, one day, I _will_ be proven right… and you'll once again feel the full wrath of an Olympian warrior!"

The Pegasus Cloth watched as the astral projection of Bellerophon completely disappeared in the darkness. Its box opened up, allowing the metallic horse statue to move freely. Its horse head helmet tapped its nose on Lance's body, which didn't react. Pegasus' white, light-elemental cosmos burned and illuminated the temple. Its shutting down mechanism would soon activate, sealing the temple until the next candidate came along. Lance would soon be locked inside that place for years.

It was time for its first act as Lance's new Cloth.

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Several hours later, right outside the temple, Lance's body shook in cold. He started waking up from his deep sleep and realized he had his body pressed on top of cold pebbles and rocks. He slowly managed to get on his knees and rubbed his eyes. "What happened?" he asked himself.

Flashes of his fight with Bellerophon in his memory sent his body into full alert. He quickly stood up and got on his guard. However, it didn't take him long to lower it as he realized he was standing outside the temple. Lance relaxed, confused, and turned around to see, in shock that none other than the Pegasus Cloth Box was on the ground before him.

Lance froze completely before the object. What was going on? Why he was outside and why was the Pegasus Cloth before him? Had he won? Had his desperate attempt to attack the warrior miraculously paid off? Lance's trembling hand slowly grabbed the Cloth's handle, fearful that it would just fly off at his very touch.

But it didn't! Lance's fingers were able to grasp the handle that the Pegasus' head engraving was biting on and, rather than react violently or escaping, the Box instead started emanating a white aura of energy that started syncing with his. Lance gulped, took a deep breath and pulled it once and for all.

There was the sound of rattling metal as Lance pulled the chain. When it became tense, the Box opened up, dropping all its sides on the ground and revealing a shining metal statue of a white, winged horse with red outlines on its hind legs and chest parts.

One-by-one, the pieces started donning themselves to Lance's body, first the greaves, then the gauntlets, the shoulder, chest and hip protections and finally the helmet. It was done. He was a Saint of Bronze. He was Pegasus Lance! Lance felt his cosmos being amplified by the cloth and his mouth became agape in shock.

"A-am I dreaming? Is this a dream?!" He spent a few moments analyzing himself. The horse-head helmet looked a little silly and his chest was barely protected, but he liked the greaves and forearm protections very much. He punched the air a few times, testing his flexibility. "This is so great! I feel incredible." he thought, grinning. Lance laughed gleefully, barely containing his excitement. He felt like jumping in the air and shouting his head off as happy as he was!

But, as Lance's excitement calmed down, he started smirking devilishly. There was one person he would like to share all of this with and he couldn't wait to see the priceless look on that person's face as he walked inside Sanctuary with his Cloth of Bronze. In fact, he couldn't wait to see the look on that person's face when he punches him in front of everyone.

Lance's eyes then looked around and realized that the snow that had filled the ground seemed to have cleared away in a perfect circle around him. "Strange… did the Cloth do this?" he then looked at the Pegasus Temple, which was still seemed to be sealed up. "_And did it get me out of it, too, or was it Bellerophon?_"

Not counting on ever seeing the spirit again, Lance shrugged off these thoughts and headed off. Having formed plans to settle his matters with Sanctuary and leave it as soon as he was done, Lance, the Bronze Saint of Pegasus, smirked and walked off the Temple, never looking back to the placed that tortured him for four long years.

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**Present time, two years later (1976), in Sanctuary Town**

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Andromeda Shinta happily sucked on the straw until he felt the delicious orange soda Lance bought him go down his throat. He walked along Pegasus' side as they headed back to the Golden Zodiac to wait by the Aries Temple for news on the meeting. Shinta watched as Lance kept looking at the ground, hands in pockets, seemingly lost in thoughts.

Shinta smiled, wondering if Lance was thinking deeply about something in silence. He did that a lot. "Hey, Nii-san, what's wrong?" muttered Shinta, snapping his fingers. "Are you worried about the meeting?"

Lance awakened from his trance, suddenly reminding himself of reality. He blinked his eyes twice, surprised. "Sorry...I was thinking about something." Lance excused himself.

Considering the most likely topics being talked about in the reunion, Shinta made his own conclusions. "Were you thinking about, you know, your Training Ground?" he saw Lance's red eyes lock intensely with his. Shinta whimpered and step back. "I-I'm sorry! I know you don't like talking about it or Kas- Oops!" Shinta covered his mouth.

Lance chuckled a bit. "...Relax, Shinta, I'm not going to get angry with you over that. Yeah, I was thinking about Mount Olympus and how the Gold Saints are probably discussing it."

Shinta sighed in relief. "Thank goodness. I'm sorry I mentioned it," he insisted on apologizing. Ever since they met, Mount Olympus and Saint Kastiel, both which Shinta had never been in contact with, had always been a big taboo around Lance. Talking about it too much would only get Lance really angry at you. Shinta understood that the two of them had completely different Masters and training experiences, so he respected Lance's desire to not talk about it, even if he sometimes accidentally mentioned it. To make things worse, there was Lance's cryophobia to consider, which only made Lance thinking about his snowy Training Ground even worse. "It must have been really terri-"

"Stop talking about it, already!" Lance instantly interrupted him.

Shinta instantly cowered from Lance's wrath. Maybe he really shouldn't have tried to make him say something about it. That was in the past and Lance wanted to forget about it. Shinta shouldn't have tried to make him bring it up. Right now, they were there to see if Lance would become a Saint of Gold.

It was then that it really hit him. Lance was actually moving up in rank. Sure, it was still being discussed, but Shinta was sure Lance would pass with flying colors. What was really worrying him was something else. "Lance?" mumbled Shinta.

"...Yes?"

"Do you think," Shinta hesitated " ...do you think I can become a Silver Rank just like you and my master?"

"Probably, if you train hard enough."

Shinta's eyes and smile both widened. "You really think so? Thank you, Lance! But..."

"What is it?"

"Now that you're going to become a Silver Saint, you're not going to...you're not going to stop hanging out with me and become all distant, are you?"

Lance opened his eyes, not because of what Shinta said, but because he spotted something. "Don't be stupid, Shinta!" His hand then halted Shinta by the chest. His eyes narrowed and he pointed at the trees of the woods west of the Golden Zodiac. "Hey, look, Shinta! Isn't that the Papal Guard?"

Shinta looked at the direction Lance was pointing and, indeed, he spotted a small foot soldier division silently marching among the trees. They carried halberds rather than spears and their shields had the Pope's winged mask drawn on them. "You mean the foot soldier division that guards the thirteenth temple? Yeah, I think so." He then saw Lance rush into the woods and stalk them. "Wait!" he asked, following him. "Where are you going?"

"_Be quiet, Shinta!_" Lance said through a mental message via 6th sense, a common communication technique among Sanctuary dwellers. "_Look!_"

Shinta stood right next to Lance among the trees and watched in shock as the captain of the division took a key and slid it through a small, inconspicuous crack on a rock. A boulder resting against the Golden Zodiac's mountain side of the forest moved away, revealing an entrance to the mountain's carved out cavern. Shinta's jaw dropped. "Lance, look! They're walking inside the mountain! What is that?"

Lance smirked, receiving confirmation of a rumor that has circulated in Sanctuary for ages. "It looks like we just found out a shortcut around the Aries Temple! Come on, Shinta, let's follow them!"

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Kastiel

**Release Date:** June 30th 2014

**Description**: The Cloth of Pegasus returns to Sanctuary after over 200 years of absence and after four years of training, Lance confronts his would be Master.

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_Author's Note: The original second chapter from the first version was approximately 5000 words long and was…uninspired. There really wasn't much to the Pegasus' Cloth test other than a fight that Lance, in both the first and second version, ended up winning. While the third version, this version, doesn't make it exactly into an Indiana Jones flick, I think I managed to give the Pegasus Temple a lot more depth when compared to its initial simplicity. The character of Bellerophon has also undergone a revamp. Various aspects of him have been changed as, in the first and second version, he was little more than a weak spirit tied to the Pegasus Temple and a rather poor fighter._

_The reasons to these…limitations in the situation, the location and the obstacles in Lance's path are there because, quite simply, I never intended to go beyond said limitations. I never planned for there to be anything special or foreboding about Lance's conclusion to the Path of the Cloth. I never intended to give any further use to Bellerophon or ever return to the plot to Mount Olympus again. Things have changed, though. It's been three years and a lot of re-planning and changing of mind._

_So, hopefully, Lance's obtaining of the Pegasus Cloth is far more entertaining in this version._

_Finally, making Lance a Saint of Pegasus was originally a choice I made almost randomly. In the original script, it wasn't important which Bronze Cloth he got, but which Gold one and, for those who have read the second version, a certain special armor of folklore. In the meantime, with the publishing of Lost Canvas and my own growth as a writer, I suppose Lance being a Pegasus Saint protagonist took on a deeper meaning almost on its own._


	3. 1A: Kastiel

Notable OCs up until now that I own: Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation;

Notable Original concept (until now): Sanctuary Town; Pegasus Temple;

Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic: Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic: 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography

Author notes:

Please enjoy and review.

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**Present time, at the Pope's halls**

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Aiolos saw the mood among the four adults grow increasingly tenser after their earlier words about unity among the Gold Saints. Taurus Daniel sighed and looked away; Capricorn Kirin exchanged glances with the Pope's mask and Aquarius Malta just folded his arms and stood silent. The Sagittarius Saint wondered if there was something wrong and decided to break the mood. "I have a question." He asked, gaining their attention. "Do you think Saint Lance's training, as characterized by the absence of his Master, had more benefits than repercussions?"

The red-haired Aquarius Saint raised a brow. "What do you mean? Do you mean if Kastiel's absence did more good than harm? Personally, while I agree with upholding Jason's Exile rules, I think not. It's important to instill morals and respect in young trainees early on."

Taurus Daniel then scratched his chin and smirked as he realized something. "Then again, if Kastiel didn't believe he could help Lance change, then maybe he wasn't a good teacher anyway."

Aiolos nodded and turned to the Pope. "I concur with Saint Daniel, your Holiness. What guarantees do we have that Kastiel's decision was a correct one? How do we know he was up to the task in the first place?"

Shion, though he favored Lance, had an objection to Aiolos' question. "I trust my Silver Saints, Saint Aiolos. I do not believe the Kerberos Cloth would choose to take Kastiel under its constellation if it did not trust his judgment. I believe Saint Lance's training conditions were a result of several unfortunate circumstances, including the late age he was brought into Sanctuary and his attitude. But we would not be having this discussion if the situation had not turned itself around after he miraculously became a Saint despite ten year olds being considered already too old to unlock cosmos. Unfortunately… things would only get worse before they got better."

Gemini Saga already knew what the Pope was talking about. When he, Aiolos and Aiolia were still in the late phase of their stay at the Sanctuary-sponsored orphanage in Greece known as Heart of Sasha, they had heard stories of the incident caused by the Saint who returned from Mount Olympus. This event was actually one of the biggest obstacles to favoring Lance's promotion.

Then again, Saga had no particular interest in Saint Pegasus being promoted to their ranks. Though it was nice to see the empty Houses being filled by qualified allies, the idea of Sanctuary Town's headache becoming his neighbor and comrade wasn't exactly filled with perks. He looked over to Aiolos and Mu and saw that they were clearly curious about Lance as they kept asking questions about him with no particularly accusative tone and having defended that Kastiel's decisions was wrong merely out of a moral question.

"_The adults, on the other hand, don't seem particularly thrilled._" Saga thought, his eyes narrowing. "_That talk about their unity sounded a little too __fishy__. I wonder what they are really thinking about all of this._" Saga scratched his chin. "_Lance is strong, though. As a Gold Saint, with the proper guidance, he could probably turn into a strong figure. Should I invest in him like Aiolos, then? It's just Lance's __defiance__ that worries me…_"

Mu suddenly grabbed his wrist and pulled it. "Hey, Saga, what's 'defiance'?!"

Saga's eyes opened wide in shock. Aiolos laughed out loud at the look on Saga's face and petted the Lemurian's hair, who smiled sheepishly at the Gemini Saint. "Mu, defiance means to challenge your leader and so on. It can have a rather violent aspect to it, though." explained Sagittarius.

"Okay, then, but why was Saga thinking about Lance doing it?" Mu asked while pointing at the Gemini Saint.

"Mu, I think I already told you that it's rude in human culture to read people's minds!" the Pope snapped. Mu staggered and stood up straight forward like a good little boy. "I'm sorry, Saga, please forgive him. He's still in the young, Lemurian phase in which kids can't help but invade other kids' brains with telepathy."

Saga shook his head nervously. "It is okay, your Holiness." Saga then made a mental note to keep a barrier up around his head everywhere he went with Mu. "Mu, I was talking about what Lance did to Kastiel after he returned from Mount Olympus. It was a pretty famous occurrence at the time. You could say it was Lance's first act both as the Pegasus Saint and as the delinquent he became known for."

"Oh, okay! What did he do, then?" asked the Lemurian kid.

Instead of answering Mu's question, Saga, for some reason, turned to the Pope. "Your Holiness, I think you can explain this better than anyone else in this room."

Shion nodded and sighed at the memory of Lance's deed. He still remembered that day as if it had been the day before. Truth be told, he was not present for the most part of it, but he had gathered enough information from the witnesses to elaborate a decent tale. "It was not his first sin and it was definitely not his last. Lance's infamous career started two years ago, on the day he returned to Sanctuary Town."

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**Chapter 3**

**First Arc**

**Episode 3**

**Kastiel**

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**Two years before, mid-January of 1974, in Sanctuary Town's Coliseum**

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Sagitta Nam, a blonde young man serving under Athena who was known for his early work at undercover missions and for spending far too much of his latest years behind a desk in Sanctuary, entered the Coliseum's arena through the gladiators' entry and looked around for Kastiel. The sound of metal clashing against metal was accompanied by shouts and roars as Kastiel's newest regiment sparred in the field and made his search a bit harder. The Sagitta Saint eventually found Kastiel sitting on one of the side benches with his Cloth in the Box next to his feet together with Mr. Aguilon, his pet bloodhound. "Hey, Kastiel!" he called.

Mr. Aguilon barked in excitement, calling his owner to the newly arrived. Kastiel petted him to calm him down. The dark-blonde haired Italian Kerberos Saint's blue eyes looked up at the Sagitta Saint and offered him only a slight hand wave, bored as he was. "Hey, Nam, what is it?"

Nam looked over the regiment Kastiel was drilling. "I just came here to see how you were doing with the newbies. Are they ready for action? Lately, there have been several Black Saint uprisings all over the world. We need as much manpower as we can if we want to keep a grip on things. Also…" Nam then pulled out a stack of papers for him to look over. "Here's the regiment's paperwork. It's mostly data about the soldiers and a couple of signature requests at the end."

Kastiel sighed. "Shit! When did things get so complicated? We didn't use to keep records on anything." He grudgingly accepted his duty and stored the paperwork inside his Cloth Box to take a look at it later.

Nam chuckled. "I know what you mean. It must be especially hard for you since the Pope's giving you paperwork over all your dogs at Kerberos Island, as well. Ever since the Black Saint uprisings started, His Holiness has reformed all the bureaucracy so that he can keep track of _everything_!"

Kastiel scowled. "I shouldn't have to report where have I been picking up the dogs at or if I've detected any Black Saint hex in their poop as of late!"

"You tell me! Luckily, I kind of like the deskwork." Nam confessed. "So long as I keep myself in shape, I prefer to do it than going through missions again. I've always been more of the coordinator than the muscle."

Mr. Aguilon the bloodhound rushed off and started barking loudly. Kastiel's eyes looked over to one of the Coliseum entrances and saw that the bloodhound was heading towards a couple of his men gathering around the entrance to the arena. "Yeah, just don't let anyone call you a coward over that or anything…" Kastiel commented, though distracted by the sight of the soldiers apparently arguing with someone as the dog barked all around them.

"Hey, I've done my share of dangerous work!" Nam protested, beating armored chest with his hand. "But I'm not like any of the top tiers who just rush ahead at the smallest scent of trouble." Kastiel then pushed Nam slightly aside and headed towards the shouting soldiers. "What's wrong?" Nam asked.

Kastiel was followed by his comrade as he approached the group of soldiers. "Hey you guys, who told you to stop?! What's going on here?" he demanded to know. The soldiers turned to him and moved away to reveal the person that had just entered the Coliseum.

Kastiel stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened in shock.

Sagitta Nam joined Kastiel and saw that the soldiers were surrounding a young man whose sharp, narrowed red eyes instantly put him at odds. He seemed to be wearing a red shirt, a pair of jeans, a set of bandages tied around his forearms and hands and, finally, a Bronze Cloth Box on his back. Nam looked at Kastiel and realized his face was pale. "Whoa, Kastiel, what's wrong? Do you know this guy?"

Mr. Aguilon growled and barked at the teenager. Lance scowled at him. "I always hated that fucking dog!" he muttered. He then turned to the two Silver Saints. "Yeah, he knows me, alright." He said with a hint of contained scorn in his voice. "Or have you forgotten me, already? I suppose it is to be expected, considering how fast you got rid of the sight of me."

One of the soldiers, under Kastiel, who could just see the threat in the Bronze Saint's eyes, nervously stepped forward. "Hey, don't just ignore us, you punk! We asked you what you wanted with Saint Kastiel!"

Lance didn't even turn to him. "None of your business!" he spat. Lance then saw that Kastiel was keeping up the look of shock in his face and addressed him. "What's wrong? Do you really don't recognize me? Truth be told, I find that kind of hard to believe considering you made sure I was perfectly aware how much of a freak my eyes made me look like."

Kastiel blinked and he sweated hard. It couldn't be! Was he seeing things? Gulping hard and summoning his composure, Kastiel finally spoke. "L-Lance, is that you?" he muttered. "You're…you're alive!"

"Well, you sure are shocked!" Lance narrowed his eyes forward and gritted teeth. "You _asshole_; you really expected me to die, didn't you?!"

A soldier suddenly punched his cheek, making his head snap to the side. "Watch your mouth, Bronze Saint! You're addressing Saint Kastiel of Kerberos, who's clearly a rank above you!" The other soldiers around him gripped their weapons and took aggressive stances.

Lance saw this and rubbed his hurt cheek. He kept eyeing Kastiel with such fury he could barely contain himself. Rather than shout out his anger, though, he found himself chuckling. "_Saint_ Kastiel? Don't make me laugh! Where I come from, Saints don't leave little kids to die in a frozen, mountainous wasteland filled with wild animals!" he growled. "You and I…We have something to settle, so don't you dare hide behind your men!"

Nam's eyes widened as he realized what was going on. "Wait a minute, Kastiel, is he _that_kid? You know; the one you said that had failed to pass the Jason Exile's test?"

Kastiel got serious as he finally processed the reality of the situation. Lance was alive. Not only was he alive, but he had the Pegasus Cloth, too. What had happened in Mount Olympus during the last four years? Had he returned for some sort of revenge? Moreover, Kastiel was having a bit of a tough time recognizing him. Lance was a lot taller and more muscular, not to mention that the look on his eyes and the determination in his voice were completely different. "I must say, I am shocked. I never thought you would make it on your own. I guess you lucked out, Lance. Congratulations, you proved me wrong!"

Lance widened his eyes in shock. "Lucked out?! Do you have any idea what I went-"

"Don't give me that line." Kastiel interrupted. "I told you before, Lance, you're no better than the thousands of others out there in Sanctuary. It's impressive that you managed to unlock your cosmos at ten years old and even more impressive that the Pegasus Cloth would choose to take a rebellious punk like you under its protection. However, if you're here for some sort of hysterical confrontation or pathetic attempt at revenge, then you're wasting your time." He said. "I'll see you on the battle field. Come on, Nam." Kastiel then walked away, followed by a reluctant Sagitta Saint who kept shifting his eyes from Lance to Kastiel and vice-versa.

Lance's eyes burned with indignation. His cosmos-enhanced foot struck the ground loudly, shattering just enough to produce a tremble to get Kastiel's attention. "STOP RIGHT THERE!" he shouted. He then pointed his finger at Kastiel. "Saint Kastiel, I challenge you to a duel!"

Nam gasped and Kastiel's foot soldiers stopped what they were doing. Many of them even put themselves between their drillmaster and the Bronze Saint to protect Kastiel.

"Are you serious?" asked the Kerberos Silver Saint. He saw Lance nodding. "What is this about, Lance? Is this about some sort of injustice you think I committed against you? It is no injustice to warn you about a test's requirement and fail you for not living up to them. It is also no injustice to tell a failing kid who cries about not being able to unlock his cosmos that he won't become a Saint." Kastiel then smirked. "And it is specially no injustice to tell that crying kid too afraid to stick his hands in a freezer that he's not man enough to challenge me to a duel. I mean, do you seriously think I'll accept it?" Kastiel then laughed and walked away. "HA, HA, HA! I'll accept your challenge when you can beat any man in this arena!"

Lance watched as the soldiers burst into laughter as Kastiel calmly walked away from the scene. He took out his Bronze Cloth Box, causing many of the experienced soldiers in front of him to rush ahead to constrict him before he could pull the chain. As soon as Lance grabbed the Cloth Box's handle, there was a blinding flash of white light that engulfed him completely.

The soldiers roared and theirs fists rushed forward towards Lance's silhouette within the bright light. Something rushed forward at them and crashed with the two soldiers of the front, knocking them away. The third one stepped back a little and grabbed the sword at his waist, but Pegasus Lance, now wearing his Cloth, dashed forward from the light and struck his chest with a powerful kick that knocked him away. One from each side then jumped on him with weapons already in hand. Lance span around once to not only dodge a stabbing spear tip but also position himself to deliver a powerful elbow blow that shattered the guy's chest plate and floored him. Having no time to turn to the other one, he blocked the winging sword with his forearm guard, jumped and side kicked the guy's face so hard he flew through the air, spinning and screaming towards Kastiel.

Kastiel and Nam stopped their march when they saw something twirling past them and crash on the sandy floor, unconscious and bloody. They widened their eyes, looked at each other and turned around. Nam gasped and Kastiel's jaw dropped a bit.

Lance's foot struck the ground with cosmos to shatter it and release a cloud of dust that screened the area. He heard soldiers all around him gasp in confusion. A couple of ones closer to him were able to detect him and immediately rushed in with their fists or weapons. Lance blocked several sword swings from the first one that engaged him with his fore arms. He then started dodging them for a bit before the soldiers tried a wider swing. Lance crashed his armored fist against it, shattering the steel blade before knocking out the soldier with a palm blow to the throat that made him cough out blood.

The soldiers that managed to escape the screen dust widened their eyes in horror as they saw four men being blasted away from the dust cloud, screaming and crashing on the floor. Something white then leapt from the dust cloud and started blitzing among them, taking them out with sudden punches, kicks and hand chops to their armor weak spots. The last three soldiers stepped back several times to try to get a hold of the situation, but they only saw their comrades falling one after the other. They put themselves on the defensive, but something engulfed in a very thin layer of white cosmos suddenly jumped upwards from the group of falling bodies, landed in front of them and took out two of them with a punch to through the shield and to the chest each.

Lance's red eyes looked up at the last soldier, a much larger man wielding heavier, green armor and a mace. He was blonde, his skin was tanned, he had a scar over his left eye which looked slightly smaller than the left one and he had a rather demented look on his face as he licked his lips. "He, he, he, you're strong, Pegasus! And those red eyes! I like your style. You remind me of a friend I used to have." said Jaki, the dreaded foot soldier recruit, who then raised his mace and swung it sideway. "I hated his GUTS!" Lance's eyes shot open and he leaned his whole upper body backwards so as to dodge the swing. "STAY STILL!" Jaki roared as he brought down the mace on the Saint.

Lance suddenly blitzed away from the mace's path, which crashed on and shattered the floor he stood on. A sudden, bullet-like concentrated impact of cosmos, which was actually Lance's foot, then crashed down on the stuck mace, breaking through its metal and shattering to pieces. Jaki staggered in horror and stumbled backwards. Lance leapt forward and hit him straight in the chest with a dash kick which stunned his huge, muscular body. Jaki fell on his hand and knees and grabbed his injured belly while Lance leapt back for distance and dashed forward once more to finish off the brute with Charge Fist.

"Get out of my way!" he shouted.

At the last moment, however, the corner of Lance's eye saw a flying, spinning ball covered in many deadly looking spikes rush straight at him. Lance's foot stomped the ground harshly to stop his motion and leapt away right before the ball crashed on the floor he was going to be stepping on. Lance panted with the adrenaline and sudden fear of being crushed.

Lance looked to the source of the attack and saw Kastiel, armor on, squinting right at him.

The Pegasus Saint backed off and allowed Jaki and the few foot soldiers still capable of moving escape. The one whose arm was shattered by Lance was still screaming on the ground.

Lance looked at the wreck on the floor Kastiel's weapon caused and gulped. "That was your regiment?" asked Lance. "Figures the best student of someone like you would be the one you spent the least amount of time working on."

Nam saw Kastiel stepping forward to the arena. "Wait, is this really happening? Kastiel, are you nuts? Don't accept his challenge!" he demanded.

Kastiel pulled for the chain of the spike ball he just threw, causing it to jump from the wrecked ground into his hand. "You have some nerve…I guess all that time alone in that mountain really did serve to help you grow a pair, but do you really have any idea what you're treading upon?" Kastiel asked.

The Pegasus Saint eyed the Silver Saint angrily. Just looking at the man who abandoned him in Mount Olympus was enough to push his patience to the edge. However, if he wanted to get his way, he had to hold that anger in. He saw the other Silver Saint taking Kastiel's barking bloodhound away by the leash. He probably wouldn't interfere, but Lance should still be careful.

Lance dragged his foot forward a bit, held his right hand next to his side and bent his left arm in front of his chest so that it would be perpendicular to Kastiel. "I know exactly what I'm doing."

Kastiel's chained spheres dropped loudly on the floor to intimidate his foe. Lance didn't seem affected. "I'll accept your challenge, Lance, but listen well…" he warned "when I win, you'll be turning over that Pegasus Cloth and you'll never step in Sanctuary ever again! I'll use every one of my resources as a Silver Saint to see that a misguided bastard like you gets banned from this sacred place."

Lance's eyes narrowed. "When _I_ win, you'll be wishing you never dumped me on that cold place or run into me on the street ever again."

Kastiel smirked. "Those are tough words coming from someone who wet himself at the sight of Mount Olympus' snow." He teased. He would now show Lance the difference between Bronze and Silver Saints.

Lance carefully analyzed his opponent. As expected, Kastiel's pose was a lot more relaxed and confident than his own. He saw his would be Master charging his cosmos, making it burn around his body in the form of a silver colored flame. Kastiel suddenly dashed forward. He probably already knew exactly how he would engage him. Thanks to years of spars and combat, Kastiel would know exactly how he would effortless block his attacks, how devastatingly he would counter him and how humiliating the Pegasus' defeat would be.

Fortunately, so did Lance.

Kastiel's left fist rushed forward in a punch, causing the mace end chained to it to fly forward. Lance blocked the punch and carefully leaned his head forward to dodge the flying chain. He then crossed wrists in a low guard to block the right fist and rushed his foot upwards to strike Kastiel right in the face. The impact, however, only fazed him for a second and Kastiel's arm swept Lance's leg away before his elbow quickly struck Lance's chest. It hit the Pegasus' plate strapped to it, however Lance was able to recover fast enough to dodge and arm swing, but not to avoid the punch that exploded right in his mid-section. Lance gasped and coughed out something red. He stumbled backwards several times and barely had time to open his eyes before he detected a spike ball heading straight to his face.

Lance screamed and dropped to the floor to save himself, but the second spiked ball Kastiel had hurled to the sky was now being pulled back so as to descend right on top of Lance, who rolled away several times to avoid being crushed.

All Lance heard while rolling away was the sound of fast steps and rattling chains. A palm suddenly struck his chest, raising him to the air, before several Mach 5 blows exploded on his body. Kastiel smirked and Lance coughed out blood. The Silver Saint's fingers went tense and rushed forward for the kill.

But Lance suddenly recovered his strength, caught the wrist with one hand and rushed forward with the other. Kastiel caught it, too, starting a power hold. Both fighters' muscle tensed and teeth gritted in effort. Kastiel, however, was able to pull back his hands while keeping Lance at bay with a sudden kick to the chest.

Lance leapt backwards several times to regain distance but, without delay, Kastiel's silver spheres started flying at him. "_Shit!_" Lance thought as he started dodging the massive sphere thrusts. "_I can't afford to keep my distance from him because of his weapons, but I can'__t__ get too close because he's got the upper hand in close combat. I have to do something._"

To make matters worse, Kastiel's silvery aura started turning red. He pulled back one chained sphere to the floor next to him and swung the other one around in the air in preparation. When he gathered enough energy, he swung it back again at Lance. "**Steel Ball Attack!**"

To Lance's horror, the metal spiky ball flying at him suddenly split into many hundreds of thrusts all aimed at him. Lance instantly fled to the right to escape the attack, which was sending countless metal thrusts at him. They crashed with the arena's floor, filling it with the sound of metal crashing with rock and shattering to pieces at machine gun fire rate.

Kastiel couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Lance fleeing his shots. "Ha, ha, ha! See, Lance, this is what happens when you challenge a man who can hurl these things a mile per second!" he mocked before he made a slight adjustment to his attack trajectory by pulling the chain to his right.

Lance's eyes detected a huge flying object flying straight towards the path he was fleeing to. In a reflex, he boosted his movement with cosmos and attempted to run past it but his mouth let out a scream when a sharp spike grazed his side, slashing him, before the sphere crashed on the floor.

The Pegasus Saint fell over to the floor and grabbed his bleeding side, wincing in pain. He looked over the spot to see how bad it was. "_Damn it, this armor barely covers any of my torso! I barely have anything to protect my vital areas. If he gets me directly I'm dead._" However, Kastiel didn't let him recover and resumed his attack, forcing Lance to keep blitzing to the right to avoid getting crushed.

Lance growled in frustration both from the attack and Kastiel's laughter. Rather than keep running away, though, he stopped as soon as he was deep enough into Kastiel's left flank and, to Kastiel's shock, his white aura of cosmos exploded in size. Lance then rushed straight ahead at the Silver Saint.

Kastiel blinked at the cosmos he was feeling from Lance, but shook his head to get his mind off it. "Trying to take advantage of a blind spot, huh? Don't be silly!" Kastiel berated as he pulled for the chain of his right sphere, with which he had been attacking with, and swung the chain of the left spear right at Lance.

Lance's eyes focused on the steel ball. He had wondered why Kastiel only used one of his spheres for his technique and the fact that this ball wasn't filled with that red cosmos proved his theory. When the timing was right, he made his cosmos explode to its true height, filled his legs and right arm with it and attacked "**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST!**"

Before the chain could stretch fully in Lance's direction, the Pegasus Saint suddenly warped forward with supersonic speed and Kastiel's flying mace ball was suddenly struck by a bullet-like missile of white cosmos. "I'll crush your hand!" Kastiel shouted. There was a brief sound of metal clashing with metal as well as of Lance's gauntlet cracking, however, and Kastiel's sphere, to his shock, bounced right off. "What?!"

Lance suddenly appeared right next to him. Kastiel react in time with an arm swing, but Lance's fore arm suddenly blocked it with more speed than what Lance should be capable of before a sudden roar was heard and a kick that came straight out of nowhere crashed with his face, knocking off Kastiel's headpiece and flooring it together with his owner.

Nam watched in shock as Kastiel hit the floor and rolled around on it until he crashed with the arena's wall. His headpiece was heard clinking on the ground and Mr. Aguilon whimpered and barked somberly for its master.

"_No way;" _Nam thought to himself. His blue eyes were practically bulging out. _"Lance saw that Kastiel needed to pick up acceleration and cosmos from his swings to fill just one of his spheres with enough energy for that technique, which was why Kastiel was swinging around in the air just before the move. Because of that, when Lance forced Kastiel to use the stationary sphere so suddenly, it didn't pack as much strength as the one he used for the technique and bounced right off his punch!_" Nam stared at the Pegasus Saint. "_He pulled it off. Kastiel used the technique too long on him and Lance was able to stop making it work on him. Not bad._"

Nam then realized that Lance, a Bronze Saint, had actually gotten the drop on a Silver Saint. How strong was he, then?

Meanwhile, Kastiel picked himself up from the floor and looked at Lance in a state of shock, still not believing he lost that round with the Bronze Saint. "_I don't understand. At his level, his senses shouldn't be able to follow the movements of my attack, much less keep away from it long enough to analyze it. My attacks were at Mach 5! As a Bronze Saint, Lance should __b__arely reach and detect Mach 1! What just happened?_"

"_That's some look he's got in his eyes, as if he hates you and everything about you. He looks like a wild beast. Kastiel, what are you doing?!_" The Kerberos Cloth shouted within his thoughts. "_Get back up and defeat that Bronze Saint! Don't humiliate yourself. __But most importantly__ don't humiliate 'me' by letting a Bronze Saint getting the drop on you__._"

Kastiel ignored his Cloth and held his bleeding forehead. He looked at Lance, who awaited his comeback. "I hope that made you feel better, because now you really pissed me off!" He stared at Lance while recharging his cosmos. The silver aura appeared around him again. "You must really hate my guts if you're willing to go through all of this shit!" He commented.

"What the hell do you think?!" Lance asked.

Kastiel dusted his Silver Cloth with his hand. "I guess it's expected. Those four years in that mountain must have turned you into a wild animal. More and more, I'm shocked that the Pegasus Cloth would choose you."

Lance gritted his teeth in contained anger. He couldn't believe the bastard! Had he absolutely no regret at all for leaving him in that mountain? "What the hell do you know, huh?"

"_I don't believe Lance is really capable of using the same speed I do. That must have been a cosmos power spike just now. He's seething in anger and that tends to make the cosmos go crazy._" Kastiel deduced. He took a good look at the color of Lance's aura. "His cosmos is big for a Bronze Rank but it looks pretty standard and underdeveloped, too. Judging on the lack of color change as he burns it, I don't think he managed to unlock an Element, either. That blow must have really been a fluke." He twirled the chains of his spheres around his hands a couple of times to strengthen the grip on them. "I know the rules of Jason's Exile as well as that of the Training Grounds. I know that a violent punk like you, who was sent to that place for getting into fights with the other orphans and calling Athena a whore, wouldn't get the favor of the Pegasus Cloth." He provoked. He then lifted both spheres up in the air and started spinning them around himself.

Lance watched, a bit mesmerized, the huge steel spheres flying around Kastiel in perfect circular patterns without the chains ever getting entangled or even touching. He felt a bit nervous at the sight of those dangerous weapons being flung about so casually. "_His cosmos only turns red when he picks up a large amount of momentum and energy so he shouldn't be able to attack dangerously like this…_" He reminded himself. Kastiel started groaning in effort and picked up the speed of the chain twirls, making the spheres fly around even faster. Lance widened his eyes. "Shit, he's charging his attack!"

Lance's white aura exploded and he dashed forward to try and strike Kastiel. The Silver Saint, however, with a mere wrist movement, made a sphere swing right at him from the left. Lance staggered, halted his march and leapt back to dodge. Kastiel smirked and played around a bit more, sending more horizontal swings that forced Lance to step backwards and forwards while dodging in increasingly elaborated ways.

Lance yelped when a sphere missed him by a hair as he dropped forward to the floor. He heard Kastiel roar and take a loud step forward on the sand before waving his arms upwards and bringing them down to the floor. Lance gasped as heard the chains rattle violently and saw Kastiel's aura turning red. There was a sudden darkness and Lance only saw Kastiel and the two flying balls encased in red cosmos fly at him.

Lance gulped deeply. Kastiel and the two balls seemed to create the illusion of three enormous, canine heads roaring at him and charging forward. "**Kerberos Claw!**" someone shouted in the darkness.

Lance blinked twice and saw the darkness and the leaping Cerberus disappear to reveal broad daylight and two mace balls charging straight at him. Lance leapt back to dodge the first one, which for a second seemed to turn into a canine paw swipe, but the second one would catch him still in the air. In a desperate move, Lance's hand released a large aura of white energy which he shot at the side to propel himself away from the second swipe which crashed behind him.

As soon as Lance landed, though, he only saw the chains of the two fallen maces stretch upwards. Kastiel had leapt high in the air, stretching both chains to the limit, and used to tension to propel himself right back to the floor in descending, cosmos empowered kick.

Lance backed off and let him crash like a meteor on the ground. The impact shattered the floor and screened the area with dust. Lance couched and raised his guard, but Kastiel quickly emerged from the chaos like a hell hound. The Silver Saint pulled for the chain of his left hand to summon the respective sphere while he engaged Lance in melee. Several furious, quick japing swipes with the hand that resembles blows from a foe with claws forced Lance on the defensive for the important second that took for Kastiel to catch the large sphere that he lifted up with his hand.

Kastiel's other hand pulled for the other mace which swung forward horizontally in an almost blind manner. Lance's first instinct was to duck and so he did, but while this allowed him to dodge the lethal swing, it allowed Kastiel to get through his defense. The Silver Saint's cosmos burned around his hand, its fingers tensed into shaping claws and harshly bashed against Lance's small chest protection, crashing straight through it and striking Lance's chest directly, stunning Lance and making his world go red. Kastiel then caught him by the neck with his free hand.

Lance screamed, but the shout was muffled when Kastiel's fingers tightened harshly on his neck. "It's OVER!" Kastiel shouted. Reliving his battle with Bellerophon, the captured Lance was pinned against the ground and Kastiel raised the spiked sphere he grabbed earlier to finish him off.

Nam gasped and his fist tightened. As it was a duel, a death was not a surprise. Was Kastiel really going to do it?

Silver cosmos engulfed Kastiel's hands and sphere. Lance's red eyes watched in horror as the same darkness as before emerged, turning Kastiel into a three headed dog, the two side heads being the hand pinning his neck and the sphere that would now kill him. "Good bye, Lance!" the central head shouted. "**Kerberos Bloodbath!**" The dog head's illusion around the spiked sphere then launched down on Lance's face at Mach five to _rip it off_.

Nam shut his eyes when he saw the ball crash down on Lance's face. He stayed like that for a couple of seconds and only heard the sounds of Mr. Aguilon's barking and whimpering. "Kastiel…d-did you kill him?" he asked out loud. He opened his eyes slowly to see if there was too much blood. Kastiel's Kerberos Bloodbath was practically a death sentence to anyone who got caught by it. Getting your face smashed by a spiked ball of steel wasn't exactly something to just walk it off after all.

However, Nam had another shock when he realized that not only Lance was alive and well, but Kastiel seemed to be struggling against him.

Lance's red eyes narrowed in effort as he desperately fought off Kastiel's grip on his neck and the sphere of steel. To Kastiel's shock, the Pegasus Saint had managed to catch both his wrists despite the fact that he was moving at a speed five times faster than what Lance should be able to detect. The descent of his steel ball had been stopped in its tracks and his grip on Lance's neck was now being fought off. "W-what? You saw through the technique? That's impossible! At this speed and at point-blank distance…"

Lance's body started burning up with white energy to counter Kastiel's silvery one. Kastiel kept pushing down on his foe, knowing that if he held down Lance he could still finish him off right then. Lance knew this and started searching desperately for a mean to fight back. It was now clear that Kastiel would have no mercy on him after humiliating the Silver Saint. If he lost, he would die.

Lance's white cosmos started transferring itself to both hands so as to hold Kastiel at bay while the rest went to both his legs. With some effort, his empowered left foot was able to place itself on the ground. "**Pegasus…**"

"Don't even try it!" Kastiel warned, sweating as he tried to overpower Lance. He could see through techniques, too. "That move won't work at this position! You need distance and a launching surface to give yourself the momentum and acceleration for it and now you lack both of them." He confronted. "Face it, you crybaby, you LOST!"

"SHUT UP!" Lance shouted as he let go of Kastiel's choking hand. He then suddenly grabbed Kastiel's head and brought it down swiftly so he could bash his own against it as hard as Pegasus could.

The impact was loud and painful. Kastiel screamed when the front tip of the ridiculous horse helmet Lance was wearing was smashed against his forehead and felt his world go black and blood gush out his new wound. Lance then roared. "**…CHARGE FIST!**"

The floored Pegasus used his empowered left foot to propel himself up while raising up his other one in a powerful, supersonic upwards kick that crashed with the center Kastiel's chest plate, the immense cosmos packed into the attack unleashing a short explosion of white light.

Kastiel screamed once more and rolled around on the floor while Lance leapt away for distance. He got on his hands and knees but felt blood go up his throat, out his mouth and onto the Coliseum's sandy floor. He coughed several times and looked up to see Lance panting and anticipating his comeback.

The Silver Saint put his hand on the spot Lance's kick hit him on. He never thought the technique could be used in the form of a kick and with such power. Kastiel saw that there was blood in his hand and a crack on his chest plate.

Kastiel had enough.

The Kerberos Silver Saint roared at the top of his lungs and his aura instantly turned red as he burned his cosmos to his limit. A small vibration shook the floor, causing Lance to lose his balance and stumble forward. "You fucking punk, I'll kill you!" He shouted as he launched a sphere upwards.

Lance looked up at the sphere, but brought his eyes down when Kastiel started twirling around in the air his second sphere. Lance winced in pain and grabbed his chest. The fight had dragged on longer than he thought and Kastiel hit the breaking point of his patience. "This is it! I have to act fast and finish this!"

"Now I'll show you, Lance, the difference between the ranks!" shouted Kastiel as he closed his fist tightly, causing the chain of the sphere he sent upwards to tense and stop its flight. "The difference between the Silver Saint elite and the snotty, arrogant brat who got lucky with a weak Cloth! Take this!" Kastiel then brought down his arm, dragging down the sphere which descent on a wide arc right on top of the Pegasus Saint.

A sudden sensation of danger hit him and Lance widened his eyes at the tremendous speed the first sphere was moving. He charged his cosmos as much as he could and leaped towards the right to dodge the ball which crashed down on the floor and shattered to the point it landed on an underground floor of the arena.

Kastiel's eyes followed Lance's flight with a smirk below them. "You're MINE! I'll show you real Mach 5 speed. **KERBEROS!**" he roared as the second sphere, that he had been spinning around by the chain until then, engulfed itself in a large, blood-red aura of energy with its own spikes. Kastiel then launched straight at the spot he calculated Lance would be at. "**HELL BASH!**"

The Pegasus Saint's feet finally hit the ground, but the new attack was already coming straight at him. Lance instantly realized that, having just landed, he had no time to dodge with the speed the sphere seemed to be moving. He gulped deeply, bent his fingers, joined his hands by the wrists and thrust them horizontally. "**Pegasus Barrier!**"

Sagitta Nam watched as Lance's hands burned with cosmos and created countless transparent rings of increasing size which stacked up until forming a semi-spherical, transparent wall in front of him. "_What?! That kid's nuts! There's no way a barrier can stop that attack. He's going to get trampled over!_"

The ball immersed in red crashed with the barrier a bit above its center, making it shake and unleash a cracking sound. Kastiel, expecting his attack to smash right through it, smiled when the barrier shattered completely, but his smile turned into a frown of horror and confusion when the sphere all of a sudden fell limply on the ground, all of its momentum and force mysteriously lost. "_W-what the-_"

Lance blitzed forward. "**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST**!"

Kastiel tried to react, but a sudden, concentrated blunt force hit him square in the chest, right on the spot of his armor Lance had cracked. Kastiel screamed out in pain as he felt the bullet like punch smash through the weakened armor and blasting his chest head on, sending vibrations throughout his whole body. The Silver Saint's body became tense and he unleashed a shower of blood from his mouth on top of Lance's back.

The Silver Saint's legs lost strength, but he was held on in that frozen stance by Lance's fist as silence filled the arena. Even his dog, who stopped fighting against Nam's hold, had stopped barking. Kastiel looked down on Lance's back and saw him breathing in silent anger. He couldn't see his face, but Pegasus was probably seething with rage.

He felt the fist abandon the hole in his armor and Lance stepped back to let Kastiel fall to his knees and hands, defeated. The Silver Saint trembled and looked up to see the student he had abandoned, the child he had cruelly left alone in that training ground for not having been able to shatter a rock with his bare hand and change his attitude, look down on him in contempt. Kastiel then looked at the hole in his chest and felt the strength of his Silver Cloth wavering. "He beat me… and he damaged… my Silver Cloth!" he muttered between harsh breaths and coughs.

Kastiel collapsed on the floor, another body in the middle of dozens of foot soldiers Lance had taken out that day. He watched Lance walk next to him and stare down on him for about ten seconds. Ten seconds of contempt and pent up anger. What was he going to do now?

Lance panted harshly in exhaustion and held the bleeding spot he was slashed on earlier. He grabbed his chest as he tried to contain the desire to spit on the bastard in front of him. He thought about this moment so many times. So many nights he dreamed of returning to Sanctuary and getting back at the cruel, horrible person who left him in that mountain. Now the moment came and he wasn't sure what to do or say.

As such, he muttered the first thing that came to his mind. "H-how _could_ you?!" Kastiel's eyes rolled up to look at Lance's face, which was growing red. He was trembling and he probably had a lot on his throat to say. "How COULD you?! I was _ten_ years old! I was just a kid! How could you be so monstrous as to leave me there?"

Kastiel chuckled. His laughter was weak and thick. "Didn't you say… you didn't need me? Didn't you say you'd do it all by yourself?" Kastiel then saw Lance's eyes welling up. "Well, there you have it… all grown up…"

Lance's foot stomped his side, turning his smile into a pained frown and a scream. "What kind of person are you?! You knew I was having a hard time! You knew I was older than all the others so it was much harder for me to unlock cosmos and you… You just left me there! Y-you might as well have buried me there yourself!"

Kastiel winced in pain and grabbed the spot Lance hit him on. "I am sure… t-that all these years… you've been telling yourself all the reasons I had to keep investing in you that you could imagine so that you could throw them… at my face." He muttered. Lance had caused him a lot of damage so it was hard to say awake and talk coherently. With some effort, he managed to roll over to his back so as to confront his student. "But the truth is… t-that all those reasons don't matter shit!"

Lance blinked. "W-what?"

"I t-told you before, Lance, a _million_ times… You're no different from the others!" Kastiel hissed. "You are just like all the other hundreds of kids that every year are picked by a master and taken to a Training Ground. You are just like all the other thousands of kids who fail to unlock their cosmos and die!" He stared hard into Lance's red eyes. "Y-you probably think you just showed to me how wrong I was, right? T-that you're stronger than the rest and that you'll show it to everyone…Now what, Lance? N-now that you've had your petty little p-payback, what will you do?! I'll tell you; you'll become a Saint like everyone else here! Like all the other kids, you got picked! Like all the other kids, you got sent to a training ground with a master and like every other kid you'll now become a good law-abiding warrior of Athena, because if you don't, they'll just label you a traitor and kill you!"

"Fuck YOU!" Lance snarled.

"You'll… do it, Lance, like the rest of us, because it will be the last meaningful thing you'll have in your pitiful life!" Kastiel spat. "And if you can't even… appreciate that… If you can't accept that you're now a Saint and you'll have nowhere else to run… and nothing else to invest your anger on… you might as well just kill yourself!" he said. He made a short pause, perhaps just catch his breath. "You don't like Athena, you don't like your master and you don't like Sanctuary…but I bet that having that Cloth on your shoulders feels pretty good, doesn't it, and so long as you carry it, you'll be bound by the rules you've have only spat on until now."

Lance's hand rushed to him and grabbed him by the collar. He lifted the Silver Saint up and held his closed fist at his face, ready to make him pay. Kastiel was starting to lose his senses, though. Lance felt his eyes well up even more. "F-four years!" he snarled. This time, a tear managed to escape his eye. "Four _fucking_ years in that cold mountain, four fucking years in that desolation, four years running away from wolves and Black Saints who kept trying to kill me. I… I just won't forgive you! I will never, _ever_ forgive you!"

Kastiel's eye caught the sight of Nam suddenly gasping at something and stepping back. He wondered what it was about, but was too weak to inquire. Instead, he addressed Lance. "I did my job… like every other Master in Sanctuary. The _unfair_ rules that you followed in your Path… to the Pegasus Cloth and the _monstrous cruelty_ you've been a victim of are just the norm in Sanctuary. It always has been. You'll see. Even the most kind-hearted and successful of the Masters in Sanctuary would do the same to you as I did, but you're just too much of an angry kid to not make it all about yourself!" he spat. "No one will pity you for your past in this place. You should just forget about it… and move the fuck on…"

Lance pushed him back to the floor. Angry and trying hard to contain his tears, he stepped on the fallen Silver Saint and started burning his cosmos in his hand. "…Goodbye, Silver Saint Kerberos Kastiel!" he said.

Kastiel's rolled up and he awaited the moment Lance would hammer down his fist of cosmos.

However, a powerful, booming voice was then heard. "WHAT IN THE NAME OF ATHENA IS GOING ON HERE?!"

Kastiel's eyes saw Lance turn around and cancel his attack. The Pegasus Saint seemed extremely alarmed by whoever had arrived. Kastiel's head rolled to the side and saw a man dressed in a white cloak and wearing a golden, bat-winged helmet complimented by a black mask that completely hid his face and several rosaries around his neck. Kastiel widened his eyes at the sight of the Pope himself shouting at Lance and demanding explanations, but the world then became engulfed by darkness as the Silver Saint lost consciousness.

Pope Shion approached the arena with furious steps. Saint Sagitta of Nam instantly went to his side and knelt down. "Your Holiness, you're here!"

Shion waved his hand upwards to signal the Saint to rise. "Saint Nam, what has happened here?" Shion's eyes then turned to the young Bronze Saint standing over Kastiel and his face went pale inside his mask.

Lance watched with a dumbfounded look in his eyes as the Pope himself was told by the Sagitta Silver Saint what had occurred. The mere presence of the tall, masked man astonished and belittled the young Bronze Saint, who never in his life thought he would get to see the second in command of Sanctuary in person, much less on the day of his return to Sanctuary.

Shion nodded calmly at Nam after hearing the full summary. He headed over calmly to Lance. He took a long, good look at his red eyes, at his features and at the Cloth he was wearing. The whole combination was turning his world upside down. "_It… it cannot be! But… he has the red eyes and he looks just like__-__" _Shion halted his own trail of thoughts, not wanting to jump into conclusions. "What has happened here, Bronze Saint? What is your name?!"

Lance sweated and stood silent before the merciless gaze of the mask in front of him. He was still seething with anger over all that had happened in that arena, but the Pope's presence was just throwing him off course so much. "I'm Pegasus Lance."

"So tell me, Pegasus Lance, why are you not kneeling before me? Have you perhaps not been educated in Sanctuary's ranks?"

Lance staggered. His first instinct was to argue or tell the man to fuck off, but he hesitated deeply. The man in front of him wasn't Kastiel or even a Gold Saint for that matter, but the Pope himself. "I…" Lance tried to answer, but he was too baffled. He narrowed his eyes in frustration. "Are you going to arrest me or something?!"

Sagitta Nam gasped at the defiance in Lance voice. The Pope, on the other hand, stared at him for a while before asking. "How old are you?"

Lance raised a brow. What did that matter? "I was born in 1960."

"What do you mean by that? Don't you know your own birthdate?!"

Tension spiked between their eye contact. Lance gritted teeth in frustration. His desire to punch the man's face was conflicting with his desire not to get executed publicly, so he contained himself by trying not to look at the mask directly. "No…"

Shion hummed to himself. "_His age is just about right! Could it be?_" he wondered.

Sagitta Nam grabbed Lance's shoulder and tried to push him down. "Hey, what are you doing? That's the Pope, you know?! Get on your knees!" he shouted nervously.

Lance brushed him off. "Get off me!"

The Pope ignored the struggling between the two and addressed Nam. "Saint Nam, call the hospital and have someone carry Saint Kastiel and all these men away from the arena. Also, make sure his pet dog is taken care off."

Nam bowed. "Y-yes, your Holiness."

The Pope then turned to Lance and the tension rose. "As for you…Well, Saint Lance, it is needless to say that this arrival of yours to Sanctuary is a complete embarrassment! Very little stops me from ordering your immediate arrest! I hope you are proud of yourself for what you have done, for your punishment for it will not be light!"

Revolt filled the youth's heart. "What?! Wait a minute! You can't punish me! I fought him fair and square-" Lance protested.

"Be silent!" The Pope ordered, watching Lance's anger diminishing before he stood their remaining quiet. "I'm afraid today's a black day for the Bronze Saint's division honor. I was having such an excellent day and now I am faced with such a spectacle. I believe myself a tolerant man, but I will not have such an insurrection in my ranks. Yes, Saint Lance, you may scowl at me like that all you want, but you and I still have a lot to talk about!"

Lance gritted teeth and looked down at the floor. He struggled valiantly not to let out his frustration. "I don't have anything to say to you about what I have done!"

The Lemurian old man folded arms behind his back. "That's unfortunate. People who do have something to say about what they have done are often those who are truly just and innocent, but hopefully you'll grow up to regret this. Hopefully, one day, you will realize how childishly you acted today."

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**Present time, two years later (1976), in the Pope's Halls**

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The Pope folded his arms behind his back. "That day, two years ago, Saint Pegasus Lance began his career as a Saint of Athena by placing in the hospital approximately forty foot soldiers and a full-fledged Silver Saint. Saint Kerberos Kastiel spent two days in bed before he could carry his functions again."

Capricorn Kirin followed. "This was all in the report written at the time, signed by both Sagitta Nam, who was a formal witness to the fight and is currently on assignments, and Heracles Aguilon, who supervised Kastiel's recovery and has now also faced Lance in battle as well."

The other five Gold Saints exchanged glances with each other. Mu and Aiolos were taken aback by the tale while Malta and Daniel only exhaled loudly before folding his arms. Saga remained stoic in his spot, impressed by the story but not letting himself show it. "So you just happened to enter the Coliseum, your Holiness?"

Pope Shion nodded. "That's right. That was the day I met Pegasus Lance for the first time and was, indeed, the first in this room to meet Saint Lance." he began "It was right after his fight with Kastiel ended. I noticed the commotion coming from the Coliseum while taking a stroll through the area and decided to see if some sort of unauthorized duel was taking place."

Daniel and Malta nodded, having also heard of the commotion that day, though only finding out about what happened when Lance was already out on his first assignment. In other circumstances, they were sure that they wouldn't have let Lance get away so easily. As for Kirin, he was quite simply absent, training near his hometown in China.

Shion chuckled. It was a serious matter, but so much had passed since then that he couldn't help but amuse himself with the memory of the day he met the red eyed child. "He didn't take my intervention well. I could easily tell he was feeling frustrated and angry with my lecture. Back then, aside from his extraordinary power for a Bronze Saint, I only noticed in Lance a Saint with some serious gaps in proper conduct towards others as well with a highly neglected education and unacceptable attitude. I asked him what he thought that Athena would want of her Saints and his answer wasn't kind..." Shion then scratched his chin.

Mu, his student, noticed his apprehension. "Is something wrong, Master?"

Shion looked at him as if startled by something. In truth, there was something else he noticed in Lance, something very important. "_Back then, the first thing that stood out to me was his red eyes. I immediately thought of Hecate's third prophecy that a red-eyed child, the reincarnation of a powerful warrior, would be born that year and the child would have a pivotal role in the war._" He thought to himself. "_Lance had red eyes and his age was about right to fit in the prophecy. It was almost ideal, meeting him like that, with him having already become a Saint. However, Hecate said that the child carried the flames of hatred in his heart… this could only mean __the Cloth of the Phoenix,__ but Lance being under the protection of the Pegasus Cloth __disproves that__ theory." _Shion then realized Mu and the others were awaiting an answer. "Oh, it's nothing. It's just that I had a feeling about Lance back then, when I met him, but it is nothing I haven't eventually shaken off."

"The kid obviously held a grudge against Kastiel." concluded Kirin "How can we expect him to handle the responsibilities and etiquette of a Gold Cloth then?"

"I agree that Lance's action against his superior was a bit… out of control, but Kastiel abandoned him to die in Mount Olympus! How would any of us react in his situation?" spoke Aiolos.

"I said it before and I'll say it again; Kastiel did only his duty." interfered Malta. "I apologize, but what Lance did was an offense to our law! Attacking a superior officer is a very serious crime in Sanctuary, sometimes punishable by death!"

Aiolos didn't give up. Maybe what Lance did was wrong and violent, but he just couldn't blame him for his anger. He still couldn't believe how cruel Kastiel had to be to be capable of abandoning a child, regardless of rules or behavior. "Well, I disagree completely."

All the Gold Saints stared at him. Saga, in particular, had one of his 'what the hell are you doing, you idiot?' looks.

Aiolos, however, stood his ground. "Lance challenged him formally and Saint Kastiel accepted. Saint Nam must have accepted to act as a witness, too. If you're going to accuse Lance based on law, maybe I should remind the room that Sanctuary accepts duels as proper justification for ignoring rank and reason in battle."

Saga glanced at him. "Aiolos, maybe that's true, but-"

Aiolos interrupted him. "Wait, Saga, I know that you're probably going to say that Lance should have kept his head cool and taken the higher ground, and I concur that that would be the ideal outcome, but I refuse to hold this action against him in this discussion of whether or not he deserves to become a Gold Saint considering he fought Kastiel in a just manner with just reasons and that he has done much work for the Sanctuary since then. Shouldn't we also keep that in mind?" Aiolos then turned concluded the conversation via 6th sense in a way the Pope could eavesdrop, as established by the meeting rules in the Pope's Halls. "_Saga, you know that you and I have done bad things too. At the Heart of Sasha orphanage and even before that, we've had to fight for our lives __s__o that we could get to Sanctuary, isn't that right? And we also have had to fight for our honor and for our pride. How is that any different from what Lance did?_"

Saga opened his mouth to argue back, but couldn't find the argument he sought for so he kept quiet. "_So you're saying you and I are not any better than him?_" Aiolos nodded in confirmation. Saga smirked. "I see." He said out loud, making the three adults and Mu wonder what Aiolos had told him to change his mind. Whatever it was, it was private. "Alright, Aiolos, I'll give."

Capricorn Kirin thought it necessary to interfere. "Listen you two; even if you disregard the fight Lance had with Saint Kastiel on itself, it does not change the fact that it demonstrated a great sense of rebellion in Saint Lance. Saint Pegasus is known for having a much accentuated anti-Athena mentality and very few traditional Saint values."

"So the problem is Lance's attitude, huh?" asked Mu.

"It's the _main_ problem." said Kirin.

Mu turned to his master, who still remained silent. "Your Holiness, you have known Lance the longest out of all of us. What can you say about him?"

Shion shook his head. "Preferably I would have my personal opinion of him disregarded in your discussion. You see, I consider him more of a conflict than a problem. I have witnessed much growth in him but I still recall his past and see a lot of his old self within him, which is partly why I asked all of you to come here rather than appoint him on my own, as I usually do." He explained, keeping to himself the 'Hecate' factor. "So we have discussed his entrance to the ranks and now I, who have met him for the longest and accompanied his growth, will tell you what I can about the person he has become after he settled matters with Kerberos Kastiel."

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Meet Shinta

**Release Date**: 6th July, 2014

**Description**: Six months have passed since Lance's fight with Kastiel, and Sanctuary Town and Rodario's ears are filled with the rumors and reputation the dreaded Pegasus Saint as created around himself. As part of his punishment from the Pope, Lance is called for yet another mission dealing with Sanctuary's enemies.

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_Author note: I still remember writing this chapter in the first version of the story two years and a half ago because it was a particularly hard chapter to write for some reason. This revamp of the chapter ended up being just as hard, if not more, and maybe that's because the point of it is fairly straightforward and uninteresting and I tried my best to reverse that, though it ended up doubling the chapter's size and changing it deeply._

_Kastiel was a big problem because, originally, I didn't have much planned for him past this point. He was only supposed to be the figure that turned Lance into that angry Bronze Saint who was toughened up by the isolation in Mount Olympus, so I never really characterized him much and I didn't come up with much this time, either._

_On the brighter side, another one bites the dust and I'll be able to move on to more interesting parts of Lance's early life. From here on out, the extent of the revamp in each chapter will vary but, generally speaking, should reduce significantly after the 1__st__ Arc_

_Thank you for reading._


	4. 1A: Meet Shinta Part 1 of 2

Notable OCs up until now that I own: Pegasus, Centaur, Cancer Lance; Andromeda, Cepheus Shinta; The Dark Princes; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation; The False Specters; Sarah; Abaddon(YI); Crane Yushira; Triangulum Noah; Terrestrial Star Guards;

Notable Original concept (until now): Dark Prince Specter Rank; Teos Cloth, Daemon Surplice; Dark Angel Surplice; Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; False Specter Condition; Dark Calling; The Black Abyss (YI); Fukusu Yari Ken; Aspects of Life; Aspects of God; Ultra-speed; Hyper-Speed; Sage of Rozan status; Sword of the Four Paths(YI);

YI: Yet to be formally Introduced, but already mentioned. It's just to claim dibs on the character/concept.

Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic: Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic: 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography

Author notes:

Please enjoy and review.

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"_He was born in Japan, like all of us, and was known among his peers for his kind heart, pacifism and resolution to protect his ideals and those he cared about to a level rivaling Shun's. His seemingly harmless appearance though, hid a force to be reckoned with even among the Saints of Athena._

_He held an important role in the terrible conflicts that embroiled Athena's Holy Land prior to Saga's seize of power and he was Pegasus Lance's first real friend in Sanctuary. His name was Andromeda Shinta Akiyama."_

-Dragon Shiryu, to the Saints of Bronze, describing the major figures of the 20th Century Age of War

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**Golden Zodiac Secret Passage**

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Andromeda Shinta broke out a cold sweat as he reluctantly followed Lance inside the cavernous staircase leading to the innards of the mountain the Twelve Temples. It was a scary looking tunnel with stone brick walls and torches, like a catacomb passage of a medieval castle. Lance led the two, keeping his distance from the sound of footsteps of the Papal Guard regiment that they followed inside that place.

"_Lance, do you know where we're going?"_ Shinta asked nervously via the 6th sense.

"_No, but I guess this is __just__ some sort of shortcut to one of the Temples._" answered Pegasus. "_They won't let us go through the front door, so I guess we'll just break through the basement._"

Shinta trembled. "Maybe we should go back! If we get caught-"

Lance took a finger to his lips. "_Keep your voice down, Shinta. Look, if you want to go back, then just go back. I know I asked you to follow me, but you can just turn back, you know?_"

Shinta frowned. "_You know I can't do that. What if you get in trouble? Besides, you're always saying that I should man up__?__ If I left you here I would be a coward, but if I came with y__ou__ then I would be a friend, right?_"

Lance sighed. Why is Shinta always worried more about others than himself? He kept his red eyes up on the staircase's dark end, looking for an exit. "_This is being way too easy. There must be some sort of trap or alarm only the Papal Guard knows about_." He deduced to himself. He started taking looks at the stairs steps and rocks for any sort of discoloring, strange shape or position. "If only the Papal Guard knows about this, they must use this to transport the servants out of the Golden Zodiac or to intercept enemy troops during invasions." He whispered.

"_Oh, I see! But why were those guards using it now? Is something happening in the Golden Zodiac?_"

Lance rolled his eyes. "_It's a shortcut, Shinta. They're using it because they're lazy._"

Shinta's face went red. It did sound convenient to be able to go through that passage than cross the endless steps between the Temples all the time. "_Lance, why do you suppose they take so long to cross the normal stairs? I mean, the guards can all travel __at the speed of sound__ and I heard the Gold Saints move even faster than Mach 5_." he asked. "_My Master said the stairs between the Temples had defenses against super speed, but he never told me what kind._"

Lance thought hard. "_Actually, I don't know either. I think it's some sort of 'blessing of Athena' that was placed on the staircases. I heard about one guy who tried to blitz through two temples with super speed and after moving for a whole minute just found himself back on the Aries Temple. I guess the fastest way to go through the whole damn thing is either through shortcuts or just plain, old running. I feel bad for the Pope's messengers, honestly._"

Shinta covered his mouth to contain a giggle. It was indeed a terrible situation for anyone who had to spend hours running across the endless stairs of the Golden Zodiac to deliver letters to the Gold Saints and the Pope, but picturing it in his head just forced a smirk on his face. He kept his eyes on the tip of his chains. He wasn't sure if the Andromeda Cloth would consider the guards a threat, but if she did she could point in their direction and help the two Saints pass undetected. "_Lance said he was starting to get better at detecting people's cosmos, didn't he? Maybe that's enough for now_." Shinta then saw that the stairs seemed to split two ways. Following the sound of the Papal guard footsteps, Lance took the right and Shinta followed promptly. "This place is a labyrinth." He realized.

"Stick close to me and don't make any noise. We'll be alright if we follow the guards." After a while of silence and a couple more avoiding the wrong staircases, Lance detected light at the end of the tunnel. "C'mon, I see the exit." The two Saints rushed through it to the outside. They both covered their eyes but after adjusting to the light, they found themselves on a steep mountainside path.

Shinta gasped with the sight of four temples below them. "You were right, Lance! It really is a shortcut." He exclaimed, excited. His smile faded away, though, when he realized there were too many guards moving around in the stairs between the fourth and fifth temple.

Lance grunted in frustration as they took cover behind a rock. "Damn it! All of that for nothing." He muttered. "I guess you were right, Shinta. We better head back."

Before they could turn around, the sound of unsheathing swords was heard. "Hold it!" a man shouted. Both Saints widened their eyes as they realized the Papal Guard division they followed inside the tunnel had hid next to the exit and awaited their arrival to capture them. "Saint Pegasus and Saint Andromeda, you are under arrest for trespassing on a Golden Zodiac pathway reserved for military access."

Shinta gasped and raised his hands up immediately, but Lance kept his cool. "I _am_ part of the military. We both are!" Lance reminded them. "We're a rank above you, too, remember?"

The Papal guard leader opened his mouth to answer but was caught a bit off guard. "…Don't sass us, kid! We are authorized to arrest Silver and Bronze Ranks on just cause. C'mon, let's go!"

"What just cause?!"

"_Nissan_, don't-"

Lance ignored Shinta and went into the offensive. "We were just following you guys around after we saw you sneak inside a secret passage in this mountain. Who the fuck would have guessed it was an authorized path? For all we knew, you guys had dug the tunnel in the mountain and were using it to sneak inside one of the Temples to try to kill someone."

"Aw, don't give me that bullshit-"

"What are all of you doing?" a high pitched voiced asked, interrupting the guard. Lance and Shinta widened their eyes in shock when they saw a little blue eyed kid with brown, curly hair wearing a classic Sanctuary trainer complete with protection pads on the knees and shoulders confronting them. "I heard a bunch of noise from the Temple."

The Papal Guards backed off a bit and lowered their arms. "Trainee Aiolia, don't be concerned. These two Saints followed us through a passage and we are apprehending them." He explained.

Aiolia widened his eyes at the sight of the small cavern on the mountainside which was now being sealed closed by one of the guards. "A passage? I didn't know about it being there." Aiolia narrowed his blue eyes and turned them to Lance and Shinta. "Is this true? What were you trying to do, huh?" He tightened his fist and made cosmos burn in it. "Are you trying to attack the Golden Zodiac or something?! Don't think you'll get away with this. I'll personally take you down if you dare to attack the Temples of the Gold Saints."

Shinta quivered but Lance only felt like laughing at the kid. "Yeah, right, that's precious coming from someone looking _up_ at me."

"HEY!" Aiolia screamed.

Lance ignored the protest. "Don't waste your bravado, kid. Like I said to these men, we had no idea this passage was an authorized one." He lied. "We were just minding our own business when we saw a group of armed men sneaking inside the Golden Zodiac's mountain innards through a passage no one knew about. Besides, it's not my fault they were careless enough to be detected while using it. What if I was a Specter or a Black Saint? We would have killed these men, walked inside like fucking kings and massacred everyone in the Leo Temple before the alarm was even raised."

Aiolia staggered. "T-that's not the point! You guys can't be here." he insisted. "I'm afraid I'll have to take you guys under arrest."

Lance scoffed in indignation. "The hell you will! You don't have that authority. You're just a trainee, aren't you?" Pegasus protested. Like hell would he let himself be taken to jail by a five year old.

"Lance, stop it!" Shinta finally set his foot down. "Don't make things worse, okay? Let's just go with them quietly. We don't have a choice anyway and I'm sure we can explain what we were doing."

Lance sighed. He wasn't a fan of when Shinta was right. "Ugh, fine." He then readdressed Aiolia. "Look, all I want is to find out what the Pope is doing by gathering all the Gold Saints like that to 'discuss my future'. We're not here to kill anyone, for Christ's sake." He accentuated. Aiolia took note of the expression since the trainee and the guards, unlike Shinta, were unaware of Lance's Catholic upbringing. "Hell, Shinta over here was trying to get me to turn back the whole way because he was worried about this precise situation unfolding itself upon us. Even if you're going to blame someone, blame me, not him!"

Shinta widened his eyes. "Lance, you don't have-"

"Shut up, Shinta, I know what I'm doing!" he interrupted. He looked Aiolia right in the eyes. The red-colored stare made the kid stagger almost unperceptively, but young Aiolia pulled himself together and refused to look intimidated by the Bronze Saint. Without breaking eye contact with the kid, he readdressed Shinta. "As an Andromeda Saint, I know you're used to make sacrifices for others, but as a Pegasus Saint I'm more than ready to take on all the weight and responsibility by myself if I have to."

Aiolia widened his eyes, "wait, you're Pegasus Lance? Oh, I see what's going on. My brother told me about you. He said the Pope really was holding a meeting about the Pegasus Saint." He explained. The Bronze Saint's identity wasn't immediately obvious because Lance wasn't wearing his armor.

"So you know about it! Do you know what it was about?" asked Shinta, seeing an opportunity to settle the matter. "Is Lance in trouble or something?"

Aiolia shrugged his shoulders. "Sorry, but I have no idea."

"Aiolia, we have to take these two under custody." One of the Papal guards reminded him. Since Aiolia wasn't a Gold Saint and was merely living and training at the Leo Temple, they could address him without any title.

Aiolia raised his hand. "No, wait, I have an idea. Take them to the Pope's chambers instead. I don't really know what the procedure is when one of the Saints happens to stumble upon a secret passage to the Temples, but I know enough to know that it's… un-orth-o-dox." He pronounced, having a little trouble saying the long word. "I'm sure my brother-" Aiolia then halted his tongue and rephrased. "I mean, I'm sure the Gold Saints will know what to do."

Lance widened his eyes. Had his bogus story about them thinking the Papal Guards were invaders worked after all? "So you'll take us to the Pope's chambers?"

The Papal Guard leader grumbled. "Don't set the fireworks off just yet, punk. We might really not have a just cause to take you down, but it'll be a snap of fingers for the Gold Saints to come up with one on the spot. Besides, Aiolia can only decide your fate like this because he's under the Sagittarius Saint's protection."

Lance smiled and winked at Shinta in success. Shinta smiled widely, happy that they were able to fix the situation and get what they wanted without any fighting. "Thank you, Aiolia." said Shinta.

The kid scratched his head and excused himself. "Hey, I didn't save you guys or anything, okay? You will still have to face the Gold Saints now, so I might have just made things a whole lot worse for you."

Shinta shook his head and insisted. "It's okay, you defended us and you did what you thought was best. Are you trying to become a Saint?"

Aiolia glanced away, a bit embarrassed. "Well, yeah. I might not look like it, but I'm pretty powerful. My brother is too. He's so strong he can beat anyone!" he boasted.

Lance and Shinta let themselves be grabbed by the guards and escorted out of there. Lance spared one last look at the child. "You're a brave kid. I could have just killed you and the guards if you pushed me too far, you know?" he commented, dryly.

Aiolia only narrowed his eyes to reaffirm his determination. "Don't underestimate me just because I'm so young! I can fight and I can protect this place just as well as any Saint. My brother taught me that it's okay to be scared but that I can and should be stronger than that fear. I…" Aiolia raised a fist. "I'm not scared of you!"

"Your brother did? Well, you sure seem to depend on him a lot, don't you?" Lance wondered out loud. He thought about his friendship with Shinta. "Maybe he'll be willing to take mine off my back, too."

Shinta glanced at him. "What do you mean, Nii-san?"

Lance shrugged. "Oh, nothing." He then turned back to Aiolia and gave him some advice. "Don't bite more than you can chew, Aiolia. There's a difference between being brave and being-"

"Being stupid, I know!" Aiolia interrupted, having heard the same saying a thousand times from his brother and Saga. "But when the Specters really come, I'll be here protecting this place and they shall see the best of me before I fall."

Shinta saw Lance stare at the child. He knew Lance well enough to see the Pegasus Saint was hiding the fact that Aiolia had impressed him. The foot soldiers pushed them to move forward. Both Saints turned away from the kid and silently marched up the flight of stairs.

{======================|0|======================}

**Present time, at the Pope's halls**

{======================|0|======================}

Shion removed his mask just enough for him to be able to squeeze his hand under it without revealing his face to the crowd and rubbed his tired eyes before replacing the black, red-eyed ornament. He was clearly waiting to remember all important details and think of a good start for his tale before continuing his speech, wanting to be as clear as possible to the six Gold Saints.

"As a result of his actions against Saint Kastiel," the Pope spoke "I punished Saint Lance immediately. As a way to teach him a lesson and counter his rebellious nature, I condemned him to fulfill assault missions for Sanctuary. It was my intention to teach him how to fight for Sanctuary and to expose him to the kind of people we fight against so he could learn to respect and value our calling. As such, I am responsible for kick starting his professional career in Sanctuary. I ordered the Mission Management Center, the building assigned to organize the attribution of missions to Saints, to send all Silver Ranked missions directly to him. It was… a foolish choice on my part."

The young Aries Saint widened his eyes. "Why is that, your Holiness?" asked Mu. In the eyes of the Lemurian child, his Master couldn't possibly fail. "How could it be foolish?"

Shion's hidden expression became grim as he recalled the past. "Unfortunately, after four months, I only kept receiving increasingly worrisome reports regarding Pegasus and the results of his missions. There was always a high rate of death around him, particularly among his targets. He was forced to work solo because no Saint was willing to take a mission with him. His attitude also became worse as he became increasingly aggressive, being involved in an ever increasing number of town tussles. Eventually, I decided to have Bronze Saints stalk him in his missions so as to keep his actions under surveillance and confirm whether or not the rumors building up around him were true. People talked of violence and corruption about him. Bronze Saints sent to follow him kept returning to Sanctuary beaten up by the red eyed Pegasus Saint. Many believed it was a matter of time before he turned on Sanctuary and became a Black Saint."

Shion took a small breathing pause and continued. "However, I didn't give up just yet and kept on sending Lance to harder missions and increasing the surveillance around him. Unfortunately… after a mission to the Black-Saint-infested Pacific archipelagos, Pegasus Lance returned to Sanctuary Town's harbor with two innocent victims; a dead young girl and the Bronze Saint of Compass who had been watching him in that particular mission. Pegasus Lance's report claimed that he was innocent and that both victims _were caught in the crossfire_." Shion then halted his tale, reflecting on the major headache that Lance's situation was back then. The Saints of Gold drank his every word, each forming their separate opinion of the scenario being described. Shion looked at the ceiling, still silent, and joined his hands behind his back as he returned his attention to his listeners.

"To counter this streak of unacceptable behavior, the answer came to me one day" said Shion "in the form of a file containing the personal data of a recently promoted Saint of Bronze, along with a recommendation letter from his Master. The Saint had just graduated from the Andromeda Island's training grounds, carrying none other than the Andromeda Cloth itself."

"You mean Andromeda Shinta, right?" Aiolos concluded.

"Yes. I was rather intrigued by the boy, especially after reading his master's letter of recommendation. In it, the Cepheus Silver Saint detailed every aspect of the boy's personality, as well as his experience on the Indian island."

"I've read that file AND the letter." interfered Kirin "Is it true what they say?"

"Absolutely, Shinta's personality is just as his Master describes it."

Saga saw the Capricorn Saint grow flustered. "Wait. What do you two mean?"

Kirin scratched the back of his head. "Well, to put it simply, Saint Shinta and Saint Lance's personality and tastes are completely unlike each other."

"That's an understatement, Kirin." said the Pope "Lance and Shinta are complete opposites. They had almost nothing in common back then."

"Yeah, the chances of such extremely different personalities actually getting along were supposed to be about one in a million." Kirin muttered.

"And that's exactly what caught my attention." Shion exclaimed, tightening his fist in excitement. "Immediately, I discovered the solution to Lance's problem just when I was about to give up on him. It was a very far-fetched solution, but I remember thinking that it was better than any other option considered so far."

{======================|0|======================}

**Chapter 4**

**First Arc**

**Episode 4**

**Meet Shinta**

**Part 1 of 2**

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**A year and a half before**

**Late May of 1974**

**Sanctuary Town Harbor**

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Eleven years old Andromeda Shinta walked along side Saint Sagitta Nam and listened carefully to his instructions. It was his first mission and he wasn't sure what to expect. His green eyes looked at all the ships in the dock. They were mostly fishing and merchant vessels of varying size. From what he understood, Saints assigned to do missions, especially Assault ones, rode them to get close to the target location more stealthily.

Sagitta Nam looked over to him and saw him trying hard to stay concentrated. "Are you nervous, Shinta?"

The Bronze Saint smiled nervously. "Y-yeah, a bit. You said I would work with someone, right?"

Nam nodded, but did so in a flustered way. "That's right, but I thought your Master, Cepheus Guardnia, had you perform a couple of undercover assignments in the Soviet Bloc and in southern Africa. You shouldn't feel so apprehensive."

Shinta quickly nodded. "Yes, I know, but Assault missions are different, aren't they? I heard they involve a lot more… direct action." He phrased, as Master Guardnia told him to avoid telling other Saints and foot soldiers about how much he disliked violence. "I would very much like if I kept doing Undercover-"

"Shinta, you remember why you signed yourself up for Assault missions, right?" Nam asked.

Shinta didn't answer right away. "… Yeah, I do. If I want the database privileges, to find my family, I want, I have to be ranked Silver and I can only do that if I get stronger, right?"

The blonde Silver Saint nodded. "That's right, Shinta, and you won't exactly move up in the world by disguising yourself and busting crime rings and human right violation groups. You need to get out there and get some real combat experience. Many Bronze ranks have moved up in the ranks due to these assignments. In fact," Nam then cringed a bit. "The guy you're going to work with is a Silver Rank already, even though he's still a Bronze Saint. You could learn a lot from him… I guess." he reluctantly said. He still couldn't believe the person they paired the poor kid with.

To make things worse, the team was set up by the _Pope_, who actually took the time to personally sign the needed paperwork. Even if Nam tried to protest against the decision, it would be in vain. Shinta would probably have his Master to thank for this, as the Cepheus Saint wrote a recommendation letter to both the Mission Management Center (MMC) and to the Pope. The King of Andromeda Island probably filled His Holiness' head with how great a guy Shinta was and how he would probably be a good influence for Pegasus.

They reached the ship Shinta was supposed to embark on. It was a modern looking merchant vessel, large when compared to most of the fishing ships but only about half the size of the large container ships that were usually seen loading crates in normal cities' harbors. Sanctuary's economy was efficient, but a small one which didn't need to carry around countless sets of huge crates. As a result, most Sanctuary sponsored merchant vessels carried all of its small cargo in the lower deck so as to not attract pirates or Black Saints.

Both Saints stopped by the vessel's entrance. Sagitta Nam gave the Andromeda Saint his personal profile. "Show it to your partner and to the captain so as to prove your identity." He watched Shinta look over his pretty new personal data, all processed and with a brand new updated picture of him. "Be polite and contribute as much as you can."

"Hu-uh, okay, Saint Nam, I'll do it."

Nam stared at Shinta's eyes and felt worse and worse about leaving him with his new partner. "Look, Shinta; the person you'll be paired with… he has a bad reputation in Sanctuary."

Shinta widened his eyes. "What, really?"

"Yeah, I mean, he beat up his Master in front of everyone just a couple of days after getting his Cloth and he keeps getting into trouble with everybody." He revealed, shocking the Andromeda Saint. "Don't piss him off, okay? Just do everything you can to make this mission go as smoothly as possible. I'm going to talk to the Golden Zodiac and see if I can get the Pope to pull you into another team."

Shinta blinked, surprised as he was that he would get such a summary of his first mission partner. "It's okay; you don't have to do that. I don't believe he can't be that bad. Even if he beat up his Master, I'm sure he has his own side of the story. Everyone in Sanctuary has been really nice to me so far. I'm sure we'll get along just fine." Shinta bowed. Nam saw the people that were walking nearby turn their eyes to the green-haired Saint. "Thank you, Saint Nam, I'll-"

Nam interrupted him by raising two fingers. "Two more things, Shinta; first, don't do…_that_." He warned, referring to the bowing. "If you want to be polite, either shake hands with your friends or salute your superiors. Don't use any honorifics either like _sama_ or _sempai_, or whatever. Your Master must have told you that Asians are not well seen in Sanctuary, right? Japanese get it the worst."

Shinta's eyes saddened. "Yes, but-"

"Don't attract attention to the fact that you're from Japan, Shinta. Trust me, it's for the best." Nam advised him. "Your partner will read your file so he'll know anyway, but don't let more people than necessary know about it. Secondly, do you have any valuable objects with you that you always carry around for any reason?" The Andromeda Saint nodded as an answer. "Try to keep it hidden, even from your partner. Flash it around too much and you might suddenly lose it."

Shinta stared at Saint Nam for a bit, honestly surprised that he would be confronted with such warnings. He nodded once more, anyway. "Alright, Saint Nam, thank you for everything, I promise I'll be very careful and that I'll do my very best." The Japanese Saint then rushed inside the large merchant vessel.

Nam waved back at him and let out a saddened expression. "_Poor kid, why did he get paired up with Lance? I wonder what the Pope's thinking._"

{======================|0|======================}

Lance patiently awaited, the Pegasus box between his back and the outer wall of the ship's bridge cabin, as the sailors walked back and forth, making all kinds of preparations for departure. He had just received his most recent assignment, but he was also told that someone would be joining him on the mission, much to his frustration. After all, Lance preferred to work alone, like he has so far.

A sailor passed in front of him, ignoring the teenager, and Lance decided to interrupt whatever he was doing of so much importance by calling to him. "Hey, you!"

The sailor froze in place and turned around, facing rather reluctantly the notorious Bronze Saint. He was a young man not nearly as tempered-looking as all the other sailors. Pegasus immediately noticed that cadet was apprehensive towards him, clearly sweating in nervousness with Lance's blood-red eye stare.

"Is it going to be much longer?" asked Lance, impatient "If we spend too much time hanging around here, the Black Saints will figure out that we are on to them before we even leave this blasted port!"

"W-we still have to adjust a few things, Saint Pegasus." the sailor answered, stuttering "But we will leave for the Atlantic as soon as possible!" With this, the soldier saluted Lance and walked away rather hastily.

Lance didn't blame him. After Kastiel's defeat, the Bronze Saint gained a rather feared reputation among the Sanctuary's staff. People would turn away from him on the street, avoiding to having to talk with him at all, and the only people who would approach him were soldiers carrying assignment letters and the stronger Silver Saints who were still unafraid of him.

Yet, for all his desire to keep on working solo, he started feeling curious about whom Sanctuary was pairing him up with. It was probably some experienced Saint who wouldn't be wary about working with Pegasus. The ship was still docked in the Sanctuary's town port and Lance could easily see all the people, soldiers and Saints around and try to guess which one would be his partner for that mission. After what happened in his mission to the Pacific Islands, though, Lance was shocked that Sanctuary was really willing to place him on a team.

Lance rested his arms on the ship's fence and recalled that mission, as well as returning to that very same harbor with two body bags in tow. It had been two months since it happened and since then he leveled up from being called a punk to being called a murderer. More and more, the possibility of Sanctuary letting him go sounded scarcer.

Suddenly, the door leading to the inside of the captain's bridge opened at Lance's right, revealing none other than the captain himself who closed the door behind him. "So, you are our passenger."

Lance squinted at the man. He could just taste the fear in the man's voice. He stood up straight and faced the captain in the eyes. "Yeah, that's right. There is one more, however."

"Yeah, yeah, I know...We will be heading to the Atlantic and then south, towards the island. We will stop at a distance of a kilometer from the shore and then you and your partner can borrow one of our rowboats. After that, you'll have to wait two straight days until we pass through the island again. If you miss us, you'll have to row your way back here. Agreed?"

"That won't be necessary."

The captain raised a brow. "Excuse me?"

"Those pick-ups are usually needed for stealthy returns to Sanctuary after assault missions. However, there will be no danger of capture or revenge from the Black Saints after their defeat that would justify such a thing, because I intend to wipe out this particular group of them entirely." Lance explained. "In other words, we'll just use the speed of sound to get to the Canary Islands, then to Morocco, then Sicily, then Italy and, from there, back to Greece. Is there a problem in that?"

Lance detected a hint of relief in the captain's eyes despite the seaman's apathetic face. The man was much older and experienced than Lance was, having been tempered by decades of dealing with storms, pirates and bad fishing days. Lance's red eyes alone, however, were enough to send a shiver down the spine of the man who was already used to handle overpowered humans like the Saints. He probably wanted the least amount of contact with the Saint as possible.

Sea crossing using super-speed was a common Saint trick. So long as they moved around islands and didn't attempt to cross the whole damn Ocean at once, the Pegasus Saint and his colleague would be fine. "No, no, not at all!" he excused "Alright, then... We'll depart in ten minutes. This is the key to your cabin. Enjoy the ride." Lance nodded, accepting it and examining the number 32 inscribed on it. The captain walked away from him, heading for the other end of the ship while shouting orders back and forth at the 'lazy shits' that composed his crew.

The Pegasus Saint walked over to the bow of the ship to stay out of the way of the soldiers. They were starting to get the ship to move, so he guessed the other guy was already in the boat. He put down his Pegasus Cloth Box and waited patiently.

"Hum, excuse me," someone called "Are you the Pegasus Saint?"

Lance's red eyes turned over and widened, in front of him stood a young, green eyed person, no older than twelve or thirteen years old, with curly, emerald hair growing past the neck and a matching green shirt to boot. The face had surprisingly delicate traits for a Saint but the Cloth Box confirmed the person's Sainthood.

Shinta saw Lance stare at him for about ten seconds with a dumbfounded look on his face and the Andromeda Saint wondered if there was something wrong. "You're Saint Lance, aren't you?" he asked once more, offering his hand to shake. "It's so nice to meet you! My full title is Andromeda Shinta Akiyama. I hope we can get along-"

"What the hell are you doing?!" Lance asked, revolted.

Shinta's eyes widened. "Hum, w-what? What is it? Did I do something wrong?"

"YES! Where the FUCK is your _mask_?!" Lance exploded, standing up and covering his eyes. "Jesus Christ! What the hell are you trying to do; we're going on a mission, not a fucking date!"

Shinta's face became a full red and his eyes welled up. "W-what?! NO! I'm NOT a girl!" he shouted with an insisting tone, as if he's had to do it a hundred times before already. He hated when people confused him with a girl. Even if people said he looked pretty, he still felt horribly embarrassed when this happened. He grabbed Lance's hand and placed his personal file on it. "H-here, take a look!"

Lance uncovered his eyes. "What, you're not?" he muttered. He examined the paperwork Shinta gave him.

_File 2_

_Name: Shinta Akiyama_

_Gender: M_

_Birth date: 09/09/1963; Virgo Sign_

_Home country: Japan_

_Training grounds: Andromeda Island_

_Master: Cepheus Guardnia_

_Status: Andromeda; Saint of Bronze_

Lance reread the info and looked back and forth from the attached picture to Shinta's face about five times. Lance realized he made a serious mistake. He rubbed his eyes and wasn't sure if he was more embarrassed by the fact that he confused Shinta with an Amazon than by the fact that, for a moment, he thought she was pretty. "O-oh, I see. Sorry, I guess…"

Shinta nodded. "It's okay, you didn't mean it. I just really don't like it when people say I'm a girl." He then forced himself to smile and offered his hand to shake once more. "Like I said, I hope we get along."

Lance read the rest of the file, eyes going left and right with increased speed as he skipped contents after contents. After a while, Lance reluctantly squeezed his hand around Shinta's. Even then he felt like he was hand shaking an Amazon since Shinta's fingers were so thin.

Lance's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Did the Pope order this or something?" Lance calmly asked. He just couldn't get over how scrawny and feminine-looking his new partner was. "I'm sorry but is this some sort of joke?"

Shinta shook his head. Saint Lance was probably worried about his lack of experience. "No, not at all, you see, I was recently promoted." he explained. "I just got my Bronze Cloth a couple of months ago, so I really don't have much experience in these kinds of things, but I'm really strong!" he assured, clasping his hands. "I can defend myself in combat, even though I don't like fighting."

Lance tried to answer this but found himself a bit loss at words. "_They're teaming me up with this girly looking pacifist from Andromeda Island? Are they serious?_" he wondered to himself, revolted. "Do you even know what you'll be doing with me today?"

Shinta excused himself. "I'm sorry, but no, I'm not sure." he said. He genuinely seemed embarrassed by this. "I know we are going to an Atlantic Island to look for Black Saints, but not much else."

The Pegasus Saint folded his arms. "…Have you ever even seen a Black Saint? Do you even know anything concrete about them?"

Shinta brightened up. "Oh, yes, I know. 'Black Saint' is a term used to refer to any man or woman who uses the power of cosmos for his or her own independent and dangerous desires, rather than following the authority of a recognized cosmos faction such as Sanctuary or Asgard." He explained, giving the textbook description taught to him by Master Guardnia. "There are many kinds of Black Saints. Most are simple criminals, rebels, pirates or raiders who know of or use cosmos and or anti-cosmos armor such as foot soldier equipment or an actual Cloth." He added proudly that he still remembered his lessons, but then he lost his smile. "But I haven't really seen one or faced one in combat, though. Like I said, this is my first mission."

Lance sighed angrily and rubbed his eyes. "_What the hell is going on? Why did they pair me up with someone so fucking 'green'_?" he thought. Shinta looked at him as if he thought he had said something wrong. His innocent puppy eyes only made Lance feel even more disgusted. "Look, just go talk to the captain so he'll know who you are. Don't forget to show him your paperwork." He ordered. "I'll call the shots in this assignment. Do you have a problem with that?"

The Andromeda Saint quickly shook his head, intimidated by Lance's glare and not wanting to be an obstacle. "Oh, no, not at all, thank you for giving me this opportunity. I'll be right back." He then rushed off for the ship's bridge.

Lance sighed again before walking towards the stairs leading to the cabin rooms, which he climbed down as the roar of the ship, announcing its departure, was heard. Lance walked down the hallway of the lower floor before he reached cabin 32, which he opened with the key supplied by the captain rather hastily.

Lance practically slammed the door behind him. He rubbed his forehead and tried to digest his frustration. He saw a two floored bed and realized he would have to share his room with Shinta. "_Oh, great…_"

As if to pin the nail on the coffin, someone politely knocked at the door. Lance looked at the door and went to open it but then he stopped, suddenly hearing the sound of a key being entered on the other's side keyhole, twisting and opening the lock from within the mechanism. An unlocking clink was heard before the door slowly opened, revealing Shinta, who peeked inside the room and saw Lance. "May I?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah, sure!" Lance said, moving towards the bed and sitting on the lower floor, claiming it "The room is also yours, anyway..."

Shinta entered the room and quietly closed the door behind him, removing the key from the keyhole and storing it inside his pocket. Shinta nervously waved at Lance, smiling "Hi..."

"We already greeted each other."

"Yeah, but...we didn't have a chance to talk."

The bell of the ship was heard, signaling the departure, and both Lance and Shinta started feeling the first movements of the ship as it left the Sanctuary's dock. Shinta pulled the chair of the desk and sat on it while Lance, instead, laid down on his bed and closed his eyes.

Shinta's expression saddened. He grabbed his arm and bit his lip. "Listen, I'm sorry if I'm causing any discomfort in you. Are you used to work on your own?"

"That's right." Lance instantly admitted. "And I don't see why exactly that should have to change!"

Shinta ohed sadly, realizing what kind of person Lance was. Shinta was hoping he could get along with his first mission partner, but he guessed it wouldn't be that easy. Still, Master Guardnia taught him that things should just be taken slowly with introverted people if you wanted them to open up a bit on their own, so maybe it wouldn't be so bad. "Saint Lance, I was hoping we could work well together." Lance ignored him and even turned away from the Andromeda Saint. Shinta frowned sadly at this. He dropped his Bronze Cloth Box next to the Pegasus one and this seemed to catch Lance's attention. "Oh, I hope you don't mind."

Lance shrugged his shoulders and went back to whatever he was thinking about. "I don't care."

The green haired Saint felt discouraged by Lance's tone, but decided to let it go. His eyes then caught the sight of Lance's Cloth Box's lid moving. Shinta watched, delighted, as the Pegasus Cloth slowly lifted the lid of its box on its own and peeked at Shinta's face. It seemed to hesitate for a bit, as if nervous or surprised about something. "_Who are you? Are you Lance's new partner?_" Pegasus asked.

Shinta nodded. He concentrated hard and responded with the 6th sense. "_Yes, it's nice to meet you, Pegasus."_

The red gems that represented Pegasus' eyes stared at Shinta for quite a bit, shocked, as he recognized the face of the Andromeda Islander from someone he had met long ago.

The lid of Shinta's box also opened up a bit, pushed upwards by a spear-tipped chain. The Andromeda Cloth's pink mask saw the Bronze Saint Shinta was working with facing the other way, completely ignorant of the conversation they were having. "_Well, if it isn't Pegasus. It's been a long time since you've come down from your Temple to linger with the other Cloths._" Its round-tipped chain silently tried to infiltrate Pegasus' box so as to poke him, but the white armor just closed its box tightly. Andromeda scoffed indignantly. "_Hey, don't close on me! Open up!_" she protested, tipping her spear chain against the box repeatedly.

Shinta smiled as he saw the two Bronze Cloths interacting. Pegasus seemed really shy, completely different from his owner. "_I don't think he wants to play, Princess_."

"_Fine, stay there!_" Andromeda gave up. "_Shinta..._" She sweetly called. "_Do you want to play hangman again? I'm really bored. We now even have someone here to be the hanged one._" She suggested slyly, referring to Saint Lance.

Shinta gasped. "_Oh, no, I won't let you do that._" He 'shouted', firmly. "_It wasn't fine to do that with my class mates in Andromeda Island, so don't think it is okay to attack Saint Lance like that._"

Andromeda's chains slowly moved around Shinta's body and neck in an endearing manner. "_Oh, come on, it will be fun, 'little brother'._" She called, exerting her influence on the Japanese boy. "_I mean, if you get all the letters right, Saint Lance will be just fine, right?_"

Shinta wavered just a bit with the sweetness and innocence in her voice, but shook his head to reaffirm his position. He had fallen for this one before. "_No means no!_" he set his foot down. Shinta didn't let go of his stern look until Andromeda slithered her chains back to her Box. He really hated depriving Andromeda of her favorite game as he didn't like boredom either, but Andromeda only liked really twisted games that usually involved chocking, impaling or beheading someone.

He really liked, though, when she referred to him as a little brother because it showed how much she really liked him. During his first days in Sanctuary after returning from Andromeda Island, she had been his only real company. He felt terrible for forcing her to behave like this, but he had no choice. "_We can play cards latter if you want to._" This seemed to raise Andromeda's spirits, but Shinta knew it was for the wrong reasons. "_But no death penalties!_"

"_ARGH, you're no fun!_" Andromeda 'screamed'. "_What's the point of playing 'go fish' if you can't pierce the lip of whomever fishes thrice in a row with my spear end? What, are we supposed to __do? J__ust go on keep wrongly guessing each other's cards? That's what idiots do!_"

Shinta cowered a bit in face of his Cloth's frustration. "_Why do you want to pierce their lip so much, anyway?_"

"_It's supposed to be IRONIC!_" she yelled at him. Shinta could be really cute with how naïve he was, but sometimes he could be really, really irritating, too. The Bronze Cloth saw Shinta scratch his head in confusion. "_It's like when a hunter is stalked by a rifleman or when a lifeguard drowns._"

Shinta folded his arms in intrigue. The Cloths of Athena really seemed to have a taste for ironic deaths. Master Guardnia had told him about dozens of tests in the Paths of the Bronze Cloth that recreated mythological events and usually involved some cruel, ironic demise in case of failure. He had been told that the Hydra Saint, for example, would have his arms cut off and be buried shoulders up, however this was done, in a particular test's failure scenario, as a reference to how Hercules killed the mythological monster.

Why, Shinta himself had four main tests in his Path of the Andromeda Cloth and they were all so elaborate and cruel that the Japanese boy was forever horrified by Sanctuary's so-called traditions, but maybe it really was the same for every Saint.

Shinta turned to the Pegasus Saint. "Saint Lance," he called, and Lance seemed to narrow is eyes for some reason, probably irritated by something. "During your Path of the Cloth, did you have to face an ironic death in one of your Tests?"

Lance raised an annoyed brow. "What, 'ironic death'? What the hell are you talking about?"

"You know, like when a lifeguard drowns or you get stalked by a rifleman." He phrased. Lance probably wasn't sure of the meaning of 'ironic', too. "I had a couple of situations like those. Were your tests ironic, too?"

Lance stared at Shinta with the most dumbfounded look on his face. He rubbed his eyes. "…Ironic? I…Look; I don't know what the hell you're talking about, what fucking tests?!"

Shinta quivered at the shouting. "I-I mean the tests of the Path of the Bronze Cloth. You know, like the pretest you take for the Master to see if you're worthy and then the formal tests that are set up for each Bronze Cloth's Path. For example," he explained "I had a pretest that involved me jumping across several cliffs while tied to a friend just so that I could train under Saint Guardnia. Then so that I could have the Bronze Cloth, I had to pass, in Andromeda's case, four tests starting from my third year. Didn't you have those?"

Lance squinted at him. Shinta quivered further and wondered if he had somehow insulted Saint Lance's intelligence. "The only thing I had to pass through in Mount Olympus were packs of wolves, blizzards, robbers, Black Saints and a fucking ghost!" He made clear. "I have no fucking clue what you're talking about with ironic deaths or _tests_."

"Oh, I'm… I'm sorry." Shinta apologized, sweating bullets. The look on Lance's eyes was so stern. He imagined their training experiences were wildly different. "I didn't mean to touch a nerve. I guess I just wanted to compare experiences and find out a bit about you. I'm really sorry I offended you." A tense silence then followed in which Shinta felt his eyes well up at the sight of Lance's angry face. He forced himself not to cry. "What… D-do you want to talk about something in particular?"

Lance's mouth dropped. What was wrong with this kid? "NO!" he yelled before turning his back on the Japanese kid and laying down on his bed.

Shinta's eyes saddened. He went to sit on his own bed. "O-okay, I see… I was just hoping we could talk a bit because we won't arrive at the island until tomorrow, but that's okay..."

Lance turned over in his bed so as to face the wall. He grunted a curse to Athena for punishing him with such a partner. He could just somehow tell that the newbie was about to cry without even looking over his shoulder at him. Deciding to just have patience, power through the mission and request his solo missions back as soon as he returned to Sanctuary, Lance closed his eyes and worked on falling asleep so Shinta wouldn't feel the need to attempt further conversation.

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**The next morning…**

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Shinta woke up with the sound of the ship's bell. He stretched his arms after one of the roughest nights he's had in weeks. Sleeping in a boat always brought him memories of being taken to Andromeda Island.

While the place turned out to be much better than he thought, the experience of being six years old, traveling on that dark fishing boat knowing he took him to his training ground, a known island of death, wasn't exactly forgettable. He'd much rather sleep on the back of a jet boat like when Master Guardnia would take him and the other Andromeda Islanders to visit the farm in Ethiopia that supplied them with food.

Daylight was already coming from the small window on the door and illuminating the room, forcing the boy to block it with his hands as his eyes still tried to adjust to the lightning.

"Good morning, Saint Lance." he wished to the Pegasus Saint without even looking at his partner's bed.

Shinta didn't get any answer and turned his gaze to the upper bed to find it empty. It was neatly made and was completely absent of a Pegasus Saint of any kind, making Shinta blink twice with confusion. Shinta then saw that Lance's Cloth box was still lying right next to his and he deduced that Lance woke up much earlier and took the trouble to not wake him up.

_"Well, it was nice of him not to make any noise,"_Shinta realized _"but I wonder where he's gone to."_

_"If you're looking for that man, he went upstairs." __The Andromeda Cloth explained with a bit of spite in her voice._

_Shinta noticed her bad mood. "What's wrong?"_

_The female Cloth groaned. "__Nothing; I just haven't had any luck getting through this pony next to me and your new partner was immensely rude to me this morning. I tried to draw his attention with my chains so that I could talk him into playing hangman with me, but he just kept staring at me with the most stupid look on his face before storming out of here as if he just saw something crazy. Seriously, some people!__"_

_Shinta sighed in relief. "Oh, thank goodness he didn't accept. I would hate to wake up with him being hanged by you from the ceiling." Shinta then headed out. "I'm going to find him. If anyone comes in, don't kill them, okay?" A furious rattling of chains inside the Cloth Box was heard just before he closed the door._

Shinta, bent on finding Lance, left the room and walked up the stairs leading to the surface of the ship. Once there, Shinta started hearing the cheers of sailors coming from the other side of the ship and curiously walked towards the deck. There, he found a huge crowd gathering around something and heard the sound of punches being thrown from the middle of the people. Shinta widened his eyes in alarm and rushed ahead; had Lance gotten into a fight with someone?

Shinta suddenly felt worried about his newest "friend" and started trying to squeeze his way between the sailors, apologizing as he bumped against them. He bumped into a larger sailor. "Oh, excuse me."

The man took offense. "Hey, don't try to shove in, kid! Are you looking for a fight, too?"

Shinta backed off nervously. "I… I mean, no, I don't want a fight."

The sailor didn't seem to enjoy Shinta's answer as he squinted harder at him. Someone grabbed Shinta's shoulder from behind and dragged him back. "What are you doing?!" Lance shouted at his ear. "Do you want to piss someone off? They're trying to watch a fight."

"Lance!" he yelled, cheerfully. "What's going on here?"

After bumping against a lot of people, they both finally got out of the mass of humans and Lance grabbed him by a spot on top of the ship's superstructure. Lance pointed down at the mob. "They're having a boxing match."

Sitting next to Lance, Shinta looked back at the crowd and saw two sailors striking each other in the middle, roused by their friends and co-workers to earn their money. The larger sailor attempted to punch the smaller one, who easily dodged and countered with a powerful uppercut, hitting the huge man right in the jaw, stunning him for a while. The fight went on and Shinta noticed that Lance was clearly amused by it, smiling as he studied both fighters skill.

Shinta remembered his manners. "Good morning Lance!" Shinta said, cheerfully.

"'Morning" Lance just answered, refusing to look away from the fight.

Shinta smiled. Lance didn't seem to be in a bad mood and even answered him back politely. Maybe today they could hit it off better. He saw one of the sailor's body turn around completely with the impact of the punch he just received, making Shinta cringe. "Why are they doing this?"

"They're betting money on each other. It keeps them entertained."

Shinta looked back to the fight and flinched a little when the larger man was suddenly knocked out by a side punch, as if sharing the man's pain. Most of the sailors complained, paying their bets, as the unofficial referee announced the winner, as they all expected the larger one to win. Two other men then took their place and started going at it with each other as well, causing the cheers to resume as the defeated sailor was dragged out of the "ring" by his disgruntled friends.

Lance smirked. "See that, Shinta?" he asked. "That's what happens when you try to use your own size in a fight too much."

Shinta nodded. Lance was clearly enjoying the situation, but he just couldn't take it. "How can they enjoy this?" asked Shinta, visibly bothered by the violence "They're hurting each other."

Lance looked at Shinta for the first time during the day, surprised by the boy's opinion.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. "It's just sport! They're just trying to blow off some steam from the last trip."

"What do you mean?"

"Imagine being stuck on a boat with no one but men that you're sick and tired to see all the time, doing absolutely nothing but sailing and be bored while surrounded by sea from all sides." Lance asked. "They just got back from a trip to the other side of the world and, just when they thought they could take a rest and see their friends and family, the MMC had them transport us right away to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Why do you think that guy earlier was so pissed off by the sight of you?"

Shinta imagined himself in such a situation but, aside from the boredom problem, he didn't see any reason to go insane and start beating each other up. "I thought he was just really bothered because I bumped into him. Why does the captain let this happen? I don't know much about sailing, but… shouldn't they be doing knots or something?"

Lance stared at him for a bit as if Shinta said something stupid. It was a look that Shinta had seen on people's faces a lot over the years._ "_Look, mutiny is rather common if the captain keeps pushing the men without giving them a chance to rest."

"Mutiny?"

Lance sighed. "Yes, the men revolt!"

"Oh, I see!"

"That's why the captain is doing the men a favor. The men are kept entertained for a while, making the occasional bet, before they all go back to work."

Shinta nodded in accordance, taking the lesson in. "Have you seen any «mutiny»?"

Lance scratched his head. "Well, there was this one time...I had to beat up the entire crew to put them in line."

Shinta seemed horrified by Lance's answer, his mouth opened and eyes widened. Lance noticed this but didn't care. "But what if the captain was being unfair?" he asked.

"That's not the point, Shinta! The point is that they went against orders and endangered the mission! They were ready to throw me and the captain overboard! I beat them up because I had to!" he practically shouted. Shinta didn't seem any less horrified. "Damn it, Shinta! It was either me or them!"

The Andromeda Saint gave in to him. "Well, okay, but you could have just warned them to give up."

"I DID warn them! It's not my fault they don't give a shit!" said Lance, genuinely upset. "In fact, NOBODY does! They just come and pick a fight and then I'm the one who has to give all the answers! I'm the one who's a fucking delinquent!" Lance then kicked the iron ship fence they were standing in front of. "DAMN IT! I just wish people would just stop talking about they don't know SHIT about!" Shinta saw Lance sigh loudly in frustration and rest his arms on the fence he just assaulted.

The Andromeda Saint looked around and realized the Lance's commotion attracted a couple of concerned or scared pairs of eyes. Lance really did seem to make people uncomfortable. His occasional swearing even startled Shinta a bit. He's met a couple of Saints who did it so casually, but Lance really seemed pissed off whenever he said any bad word.

However, Shinta couldn't help but feel some sympathy towards Lance. Shinta, too, hated when people would just assume things about him, like him being a girl or too weak to be of any use or resistance. Suddenly, as if to justify said presumptions, his seasickness started acting up and Shinta started to feel dizzy. He trembled in discomfort, grabbed his stomach and moaned in pain.

"...What's the matter?" asked Lance.

"...Oh, it's nothing..." said Shinta, smiling weakly. He really didn't want to pass on those bad presumptions to Lance. "I'm just feeling a little sick, that's all...I usually do fine on boats, but when they go so slowly… There's just something about all the shacking that makes me want to-"

Lance backed off in startle. "Hey, don't puke all over me! Or all over the sailors! Here," Lance pulled out a cylinder from his left pocket and grabbed Shinta's left hand, placing the object just above his palm and opening it with the thumb. From it, a single, light orange pill fell on Shinta's hand and Lance stored the recipient inside his pocket again. "Take this pill. I was keeping in stock a couple of months ago, but I don't need them anymore." ordered Lance. "It will ease the seasickness."

Shinta smiled and swallowed it in a single gulp, not thinking twice. "I...I don't feel any different."

"Give it some time!" Lance then bumped his stomach with his fist, making him grab it in pain. "And man up already! What are you going to do if you have to fight on a boat? What if we run into Black Saint pirates and they try to board us, huh?"

Shinta looked past all the harshness. "…Thank you, Saint Lance. I'm sorry I forced you to spend a pill on me."

"Whatever!" Lance answered, looking away from the boy. "I told you I don't need them anymore. I just don't want the captain to complain that you puked all over the bridge's windows..."

Shinta then realized something. "Well...you could have just told me to puke over the fence to the sea, right?" Lance didn't answer. Shinta smiled, feeling glad to have found a kind side deep within the cold Saint. "Saint Lance?"

Once more, lance seemed to tremble in irritation for some reason. "What?"

"Do you think it's going to be tough on the island?"

Lance glanced at him for a second "Are you nervous or something?"

"Yeah, a little bit."

A fifth and a sixth sailor both entered the makeshift boxing area, the winner of the previous match being patted on the back by those who bet on him and cursed at by those who didn't. Lance decided to ignore the next match and answer the kid's question. "Follow my lead and you shouldn't have anything to worry about."

"Ok, Saint Lance."

Lance's teeth gritted. "Stop calling me that!" he suddenly snapped.

"Huh? Does it bother you, Lance? It's just that-"

"I said, don't call me that! We're of the same goddamn rank!"

"But-"

"Don't call me 'Saint', EVER!" Lance then began to storm off. "I'll see you when we're ready to take off from this boat! Until then, leave me the hell alone!"

Shinta's widened eyes couldn't stop staring in shock at his new partner. The Andromeda Saint what just happened. His expression saddened. "I'm sorry..." he muttered, almost to just himself.

Lance stopped, sick of the tense air between them. "It reminds me of my 'master', okay?!" he shouted.

Shinta widened his eyes in shock. "What? Your Master?"

Lance gritted teeth and kept looking away. "He always made me call him _Saint_ Kastiel, too. He said it was a sign of respect to superior ranks and teachers. It just pissed me off immensely, but I did it anyway." He confessed. "It didn't do much for my attitude in his perspective since he dropped me in that mountain anyway! I don't like Sanctuary, I don't like the other Saints, I don't like Athena and I definitely don't like being reminded of that asshole's _lessons_!"

Shinta narrowed his eyes, intrigued and confused. "Why not? Why do you hate so much to be reminded of your master, Lance?"

"Why the hell do you think I don't like it?!" Lance exploded as he turned back. "Haven't you heard all those stories about me getting back from the death trap he left me on and humiliating him in front of everyone?! Haven't you heard about how much I fucking detest my own Master, like some ingrate, godless piece of shit?!"

"I haven't,," Shinta confessed. He looked down to his own lap and clasped his hands on it.

Lance stared at him in disbelief. He exhaled loudly in exasperation, leaned against a rail and rubbed his eyes. "After only two weeks, he abandoned me in the training grounds of Mount Olympus, saying that I was going to die anyway. I _hate_ that man!"

Shinta gasped. "He...abandoned you? That's so awful!" Lance said nothing to answer this. Suddenly, Shinta's sadness turned into guilt, as he realized what Lance went through and how he was feeling. Shinta had the kind, supportive Cepheus Guardnia to help him. He always stood by his side and helped him when he needed while nobody helped Lance. Shinta looked away from Lance, feeling guilty. "I'm sorry, Lance. I promise I won't call you 'Saint', anymore. I wanted to show you that I really appreciated your help and that I respect you. I really wanted to get along with you and I guessed I tried a bit too hard. I promise I won't tell anyone about this conversation." He vowed. Master Guardnia had told him many times he should keep talks like these to himself so as to respect the trust people had in you. "We're complete strangers to each other and I forced you to just confess something like that. I'm really sorry."

"I don't need your sympathy." Lance spat. "I just need you to stop pissing me off."

Shinta nodded. "Okay, Lance… Can I just call you by your name?"

"Just...Fine, I don't care." The Pegasus Saint shrugged off. "So what else did they tell you about me? Have they told you I'm an evil bastard who dances around corpses, drinks the blood of my enemies and like to rape little girls?" Lance insisted. "Or are you too naïve to know about rape, too?!"

Shinta looked up at him in horror. "They… have, but…" he hesitated. Lance sounded so angry, like someone who was sick of having been bullied all his life. Shinta could really relate to that, even though just a little bit. "I don't believe any of that. I don't believe you've really done such a bad thing."

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**Later that night**

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Lance shook hands with the captain as Shinta hopped into the small boat, Cloth box on his back and ready to leave. Above them, a particularly dark night stretched towards the horizon, illuminating as little as it could the two men making the final preparations.

"Remember." warned the Captain. "At 2am two days from now, I'll pass by the island again. If you are not in the vicinity, I'll assume that you are both dead and report back to the Sanctuary as such! I don't want my boat to be in the vicinity of a Black Saint HQ any longer than it has to."

"I already told you that you don't have to!" Lance snapped in frustration. "We'll be island hopping back to the main land so don't bother shitting your pants about getting back here."

The captain groaned something between teeth, angered. "_I might just not do that, then!_" he thought to himself.

Lance hopped into the boat, placing the Pegasus Cloth box on the metal floor and sitting on one of the ends. Shinta waved at the captain as the latter one lowered them, wishing him the 'goodbye' and 'thank you' that Lance conveniently 'forgot'. The chains holding the boat dropped it as soon as it was lowered enough, and the boat crashed with the water's surface. Lance picked the paddles and started rowing away from the boat, then helped by Shinta who also grabbed a pair of paddles.

The ship then sailed away without ringing its bell so as to not call any attention from the island.

The two of them kept their silence. Shinta sensed an opportunity to finally break the ice with the Pegasus Saint with something positive, but he was unsure how to do that. It was pretty clear that talking mainly about his past was not a good idea. Maybe he should ask him about something he liked?

The Andromeda Saint thought hard. Lance did seem to like fights and analyzing them from the way he commented on those boxing matches earlier that morning. He also detested Saint Kastiel. Shinta then realized that it was actually pretty amazing that Lance, a Bronze Saint like him, got out of a dangerous Training Ground after just four years of independent training tough enough to take on a seasoned Silver Saint.

"Lance, how did you beat him?" he asked, genuinely curious. He normally abhorred fighting, but now this subject just picked his curiosity. He took care not to mention the K-word directly. "How did you beat Kerberos? Were you really that strong when you returned from Olympus?"

Lance seemed surprised by the sudden change of subject. "Well, I…Not really, but I didn't get lucky if that's what you're wondering. I didn't know anything about his fighting style prior hand so I had to be very careful and analyze all his moves right on the spot." Lance then smirked when he recalled how easy it became to figure out Kastiel's strategies. "Usually Saints focus on the combat techniques they are taught by their Masters and martial arts and they don't go much beyond that. Kastiel's strategy was pretty much taking advantage of circular momentum and how scary his mace heads were. He would spin them around to pick up the burning cosmos in his weapon before hurling them in a variety of ways."

Shinta nodded and even smiled a bit as he recognized this strategy from seeing Master Guardnia fight with the star-headed chain of his Cepheus Cloth. "So, how did you figure out his weak points?"

Lance rubbed his chin. "Well, it became all about dodging his chain swings and, because they were so heavy, they created opportunities for me to position myself carefully to attack. It was a dangerous game to lure him into positions I could take advantage of, though. I almost got my head smashed several times. I realized his cosmos would turn red whenever it was accumulated to its maximum so I knew when I had to be careful." Lance then skipped right ahead for the end. "His last technique used that red cosmos to create a round sphere of energy around one of his spheres. The objective of that is to reduce the risk of missing by making the weapon 'larger'. This allowed him to put a bit more effort on attack power, too, as he wasn't so worried about missing. I had a technique, thought, perfectly suitable for that."

Shinta smiled as he saw Lance just blurting out words without realizing it. He really did seem to like talk about fighting. If Shinta himself wasn't so opposed to it, he would probably be able to engage him in hours of conversation about it. "Why is that so? What kind of technique is it?"

"It's Barrier. It's kind of a simple name, but it's fine for my purposes. It looks like a normal protective field, but it is actually composed of several cosmos rings of different sizes stacked in front of each other in order to form a semi-sphere in front of me. The rings in the front take in the energy, give in under the pressure and pass it on the ones behind. This disperses the energy of the blow away from me in all directions and makes the barrier shatter completely, but it also robs the attack of most of its force." Lance then smirked devilishly. "You should have seen the look on his face when the mace end of his chain just fell flatly on the floor after trampling all over my Barrier. It was priceless!"

"Oh, I see, that's so smart!" Shinta awed in admiration.

There was one serious flaw, though, but Lance kept that to himself. "_Barrier doesn't work at all on concentrated attacks. The only reason Barrier worked on Kastiel's Hell Bash was because the increase of the impact volume created by the thick layer of energy also meant that the force of the steel ball was more spread out throughout said volume. Had Kastiel attacked me with a normal steel sphere, I would have died._"

"I have a couple of defensive techniques as well, but they're not that elaborate." Shinta continued.

Lance shook his head as he suddenly realized how much Shinta got him to talk. "Well, they better work against Black Saints because you're about to head for a den of them and I won't save your life." Lance then shrugged. He wasn't used to talk so much so light-heartedly with someone. He looked over his shoulder and saw the dark island awaiting them. "They will have no mercy on you or me. If they can, they'll kill us on sight. We'll arrive at the beach soon and after that, it's enemy's territory."

After a while, Lance and Shinta both saw the island at the distance, and the two Saints started rowing faster towards its direction. It was mostly tropical, with a large mountain rising from between the woods in its western side and a beach barely visible due to the darkening night sky.

Lance looked up and saw clouds covering the moon. "Let's hurry." said Lance "Before we are spotted by the Black Saints."

Shinta sweated a bit in nervousness and gulped. Nothing in Andromeda Island had really prepared him for this. He decided to just follow Lance's lead, trust in the Andromeda Cloth's instincts and generally do his best. Hopefully, they would come out victorious and no one would have to get hurt or die.

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Meet Shinta Part 2 of 2

**Release Date:** 20th July 2014

**Description**: The two Bronze Saints infiltrate the island and Lance lays out the plan for their assault on the Black Saints. Upon taking it into action, though, things don't go so well on Shinta's side.

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_Author's Note: In the original script of the story, Andromeda Shinta, believe it or not, was not meant to be. Creating him was the solution for a problem that arose around Lance as I wrote the first version of Lance's Role, that problem being that he interacted with no one asides from the Pope and a couple of Saints. The choice of him being a pacifist came from it being a nice personality to drive out Lance's thoughts and opinions into the open by generating some conflict between the two of them, the choice of him being a Saint came from the need for him to be someone who could keep up with Lance's pace and the choice of him being an Andromeda Saint was…well, to say it was random doesn't really nail it, but I guess it was because I thought someone with Shun's fighting style would combine well with someone with Lance's._

_Those of you who have read the second version are probably wondering how that can all of this be, considering Shinta's interactions with the main antagonist of the second Arc. Well, let's just say that that touches one of the main reasons I decided to revamp the story into a third version: to correct retcons!_

_Shinta turned out to be a rather popular character and his importance, character development and personality will be mostly conserved in the revamp, though I will probably try to focus on making him a bit more three-dimensional, as I will do with other characters._


	5. 1A: Meet Shinta Part 2 of 2

Notable OCs up until now that I own: Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation;

Notable Original concept (until now): Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town;

Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic: Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic: 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography

Author notes:

Please enjoy and review.

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**Moments later, at the island's shore**

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Rain crashed down on the beach ferociously as a tropical storm hit the island. The two Saints pulled the boat out of the water and carried it over the beach at a quick pace. While the storm certainly gave them cover, Lance was shivering cold and Shinta looked like he was about to sneeze.

"Come on!" roused Lance "We are sitting ducks on this beach! We have to hide the boat before the Black Saints spot us!"

Shinta nodded. "O-ok, Lance!"

Once under the cover of the first palm trees, the Bronze Saints stopped and dropped the boat in the sand. Lance analyzed his surroundings as Shinta picked up his cloth box and a container of water from within their transportation, noticing that the palm tree forest in that particular area was thinner than it looked from afar. This meant that Black Saints could still easily spot them from an elevated position.

"What do we do, Lance?" asked Shinta. Even he felt a bit exposed there. The strong wind that made the palm trees rock left and right also unnerved him a lot. "Do we go deeper inside the forest?"

Lance looked west, towards the mountain side and saw, beyond all the palm trees trunks, a dark entrance into the mountain's belly.

"No, I don't want to risk stumbling upon the bastards!" he answered before pointing at the cavern. He had to shout so that Shinta could hear him over the wind sound. "Look! Let's hide there!"

Shinta narrowed his eyes and spotted the cave. He then nodded at Lance in accordance. The two of them picked up the boat once again and carried it through the trees and into the cave. It was large, wide and deep, making it a decent hideout for the night and, as soon as they reached the end of it, they dropped the boat in the sandy floor and allowed themselves to catch a breath.

The interior was dry and very poorly illuminated, but it was enough by Lance's standards, who took the Pegasus Cloth box from the boat, placed it against the curved, rocky wall, and sat next to it. Shinta mimicked his movements on the opposite wall after he twisted the boat so that it would act as a shield against the wind, and the two Saints found themselves finally safe, facing each other.

"So, what now, Lance? Do we wait?"

Lance's arm reached for the inside of the boat from where, after a short while of blind search, he took out a piece of folded paper which he unfolded on his lap, revealing a chart of the island which was partially damaged by the rain's water. Lance analyzed it, trying to see past all the darkness, noticing that the island was shaped a little like Australia with the mountain they saw from far away dividing it in half.

The beach from which they entered was on the south of the eastern side and it was nothing but woods to the north. On the western side of the mountain there was an X drawn in red right in its southwestern edge, signalizing the place where the scouts spotted the Black Saints from afar.

Shinta sneezed all of a sudden. He sighed in exhaustion and laid back a bit more.

Lance noticed all of this. "Do you want to go out there in the dark and the storm to hunt down Black Saints? They'll catch us before you can ask for your tissue. We'll wait here for the morning." he answered, his eyes still focused on the map "It would be strategic suicide to attack them at night. We are not sure exactly where they are based and they know this island top to bottom, which is more than it can be said about us. If we tried to find them now, the chances of an ambush would be deadly high."

Shinta nodded and tried to add his own thoughts to the matter. "But we might catch them by surprise if we do the opposite of what they expect us to do."

Lance cringed. "Uh, you _are_ green. I'm not taking that chance. If I don't bring you back alive then they'll consider this mission a failure...whether I end up capturing the leader or not."

Shinta didn't know what to conclude from Lance's words; if he cared about him or about his mission, that is. Lance kept on analyzing the map, pointing it towards the light for a better view while Shinta patiently waited for any conclusions he might make. After a short while, Lance folded the chart and placed it inside the boat, stretching his legs and trying to find a more comfortable position to rest. Outside, the sound of the wind roaring could be heard, and Shinta thanked the heavens that, at least, they found a decent cover for the rain and the wind.

"Alright… This is what we are going to do; we spend the night here and, in the morning, we'll cross the mountain to the other side. When I found out I'd be forced to work with someone, I laid out a plan to deal with this particular group of Black Saints and I'll need your help."

"My Andromeda chains can warn us about threats!" Shinta pointed out, trying to be helpful.

"What? Really?" Lance asked, surprised and intrigued.

"Yeah!" said Shinta as he showed off his Cloth Box, excited like a child showing off a new toy. "They react to the presence of evil people and bad intentions!"

Lance looked at the Andromeda Cloth Box, noticing the design of the Andromeda princess carved on it. He heard that the Cloth of Andromeda had many unique traits and abilities, but to actually sense threats was a shock. "_This actually explains why earlier that morning I saw the chains moving around in the room. This kid might be more useful than I thought._" While this was fortunate news, it actually put a wrench to his original plan of how to capture the whole Black Saint group. "_I was planning from the start to use the new partner they assigned to me to lure away the main group of Black Saints out of their base while I went my own way, but I wonder if it will be __w__iser to __just__ stick together?_" Lance rubbed his chin in reflection. "_No, __that won't work._"

Shinta saw Lance in deep thought. "What is it, Lance?"

Lance decided to give his new partner a crash course on the people they were facing. "Listen up, Shinta! Black Saints usually consist of small groups of people who know about cosmos who roam about in the world breaking the law. Despite how chaotic most of them are, Black Saint groups are usually led by someone." He then tossed the Andromeda Saint a single page from the files on the mission. "These ones are coordinated by some jackass called 'Ray'. They've been pirating the Atlantic for a while now and making money off those new drugs, cocaine and heroin, as well as human traffic."

Shinta blinked. "Human traffic?"

Lance squinted at him. "Slavery, Shinta! They kidnap and sell people for organs, labor or sex!"

Shinta gasped. "Oh, that's horrible. People really do that? I mean," he corrected himself "I know about sexual slavery. In my undercover assignments I saw people do really mean things to others, even children, but…"

"Well, how did you think they got their hands on those people?" Lance chastised.

"…Okay, I get it, but why doesn't anyone do something to stop that?"

"Because there's not much the national authorities can do to stop a bunch of guys who can move at the speed of sound, break rocks with fists and stop machine gun fire with their bare hands in open combat, much less in under-the-radar stuff like this. That's why Sanctuary has to deal with these bastards!" Lance explained. "Fortunately, people outside Sanctuary's control and education very rarely awaken cosmos, thus limiting the number of Black Saints significantly. However, for the past couple of years, the organization of Black Saint groups has been improving. They're getting smarter and more numerous. This particular group has been using tactics that allow a percentage of them to always escape. I have a plan on how to deal with that, but I'll have to do some scouting first." Lance got up and headed for the exit.

Shinta interfered. "Wait, you're going out in the dark and in the rain?! What if they see you? You just said the chances of us being ambushed were high out there!"

Lance scoffed. "What, you think I'm new at this like you?" he asked harshly. "I'll be fine if I go alone and don't take anything with me that can draw attention in the dark or identify me as a Saint, like my Cloth. I know what I'm doing. Stay here and look after our Cloths."

Shinta nodded in compliance and sat back next to the Boxes. However, like some bad thought suddenly flashed through his mind, Shinta's smile disappeared and was replaced by a concerned look. "Lance...is it going to get dangerous tomorrow?"

Lance stared at the Andromeda Saint, mouth slightly opened, surprised by the kid's question. Shinta was obviously against violence and was most likely completely unprepared for a real battle.

"Don't expect it _not_ to be dangerous, Shinta. This is the real thing. This is what you've been training for during the last six years. From now on, on these missions, people will hate you, will harm you and WILL try to kill you. The sooner you get used to it, the better."

"That's not true...People can be reasoned with." answered Shinta, looking at his feet.

Lance stared at him, almost insulted by the boy's naivete. Shinta simply refused to believe that the world was forged by violence, trying his very best to avoid fighting. "Not these people, Andromeda! Black Saints are rebels! They make a point out of despising 'Sanctuary dogs' like us! They'll try to kill you on sight!"

"But-"

"Shinta... This is not Andromeda Island...Your rivals here are not your friends and your master isn't here to hold your hand. You either do or die! Yes, it WILL get dangerous. What's it going to be? Are you going to fight or are you going to try to reason with bloodthirsty bastards?"

Shinta saw the seriousness in Lance's red eyes and shivered a little. He realized that Lance wasn't trying to scare him or tease him like the people who brought him to Andromeda Island did, telling him that he was, essentially, going to hell. And even though Andromeda Island was very, very harsh, it was nowhere near as harsh as the soldiers threatened. He had Master Guardnia and he had friends too, which, unfortunately, didn't survive the training.

But Lance was right. He was not on Andromeda, he didn't have his master, he was on an island full of people ready to kill him and he only had the notorious Pegasus Lance, whom the Silver Saints made seem like a monster back in the Sanctuary, to count on.

Lance turned out not to be as bad as Nam told him he was, and Shinta had hopes that he could be friends with him. But friendship is friendship and war was something else entirely different.

"Get some sleep. They won't patrol their own territory with this weather. If when I get back the weather changes, we'll take shifts in watching for enemies." Lance said, ending the conversation before heading out to the dark forest.

Shinta nodded, not really feeling like arguing with Lance any further. "Be careful." He wished. Shinta then tried to find the most comfortable position possible in the cave's floor as he relaxed and closed his eyes. "_I hope he hurries up. This place is sort of scary._" He thought. The sound of the storm just made it worse.

Shinta then remembered something important. Since Lance was gone, he should take this opportunity to pray. His hand reached inside his collar and took out the silver pendant he kept from his late dad. He stared at it for a second, reminded of his parents. He then clasped his hands tightly around it.

"Dear God…" he prayed. Even after six years under Sanctuary's wing, he still had not the heart to pray to Athena instead of God, like Mom taught him. "Please watch over Mom in Japan and Dad in heaven. Also, please watch over Master Guardnia in Andromeda Island, Saint Cassiopeia in her missions in…'Apartheid', wherever this country is, and Saint Nam, who may not fight Specters but fights bureaucracy every day, whatever that means." He wished. He never had any idea dealing with stress was just as dangerous as dealing with murderers until Saint Nam taught him about it. He then focused extra hard on the last one. "Also, please watch over Lance as he scouts the island. I know he's a good person deep inside, even if he's really angry all the time. Amen."

Shinta then stored the pendant inside his Cloth Box for safe measure and tried to get some sleep. He will need as much as possible for, not only he had a big day ahead of him, but Lance would probably return at any moment and wake him to take the next guard shift.

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**Sometime later, elsewhere on the island**

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Inside the Black Saint warehouse hideout, several men wearing small pieces of black colored armor moved around hastily carrying cargo on their backs. The sound of the storm could be heard outside and even the wooden walls of their large building seemed to shake with the wind.

Their leader, a huge man with short blond hair carry a heavier set of armor pointed at their hidden dock. "Get everything on the boats!" Ray ordered. He watched his men store all the merchandise and weapons on the escape rafts to prepare for the trip to Safi. They had to stay under the Saints' radar; they couldn't afford to hop around the islands with superspeed and had to take the boats. He turned over to the guy who tipped them off and smirked. "It's a good thing you arrived here before the Silver Saints. I was actually getting comfortable in this place and would get a nasty surprise if it wasn't for your warning. So you're our contact from North Africa? It must have not been easy to operate right within Sanctuary's ranks."

The red eyed teenager nodded. "That's right, but I got something else for you." He then tossed the huge Black Saint Shinta's picture. "They sent a Bronze Saint ahead with me to try and take you guys down. He's been very annoying and I wanted to teach him a lesson. I thought you might get something out of him. You have contacts with those 'circles', don't you?"

Ray took a close look at the picture. "I see… Interesting, and he's pretty, too. He might be worth a buck with those freaks. Plus, he's a Saint so he'll be worth a lot more. You wouldn't believe the amount of clients I have who'd love to fuck all over this little face. I need to get some stardust shackles, though…" he then narrowed his eyes at the teen. "What's the catch?"

The teen smirked. "He's got combat chains that warn him of danger and he's from Andromeda Island, the second most dangerous training ground. Taking him down won't be easy." He then scratched his chin. "There's another problem, though."

"What is it?"

"There's the chance that the Pope has sent Bronze Saints to tail me. He has done it before and I doubt it wasn't the first time he pairs me up with someone on a mission." the contact then seemed to have an idea. "I know; I'll draw him out to this side of the island in the tomorrow night. He's naïve so he trusts me, but I can't afford to be seen cooperating with you guys by the Pope's spies. I have a cover to maintain."

"I see, I understand. You've been very useful to us today. It's a shame we only got to meet face-to-face today. Those supplies you had smuggled to us from Cadiz were really useful." Ray thanked while pointing with his thumb at the crates of weaponry. "The commies in Africa alone will give us a boatload for those. I wouldn't like you to lose your position when you're such a good inside man. Tell you what, you drive him here like you said and then find a way to separate yourself from him. We'll be watching the whole thing so we'll know when to act. I'll go there myself with some of my men to capture him. We'll take the chance to search the area for anyone tailing you, too. You can then just tell Sanctuary that the kid got away from you and that you couldn't get to us fast enough before we escaped with him."

"It's a deal, then?"

Ray chuckled and shook his hand firmly. "Hell, yes! It's a pleasure to do business with you. We'll send you your share of the sales, including that of the Andromeda Saint, later." Ray then realized something. "You've helped us a lot and I haven't even caught your name right. What was it, again?"

The Pegasus Saint smirked. "It's Lance. You'll see me tomorrow with a white cloth and a fool crying by my side."

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**Chapter 5**

**First Arc**

**Episode 4**

**Meet Shinta**

**Part 2 of 2**

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**The next ****nightfall****...**

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Lance tied the forearm protections of his Pegasus Cloth around his fighting bandages and carefully placed the horse head helmet on his head. Fortunately, the storm had passed during the night. During the day he managed to do some decent scouting, and he was also able to memorize the patrol routes of the Black Saints last night. Now they only need to move carefully around the island and should accomplish their objectives "Come on, hurry the hell up!" he shouted.

Shinta walked out of their hideout in a hurry, still placing on pieces of his Cloth. "I'm here, I'm here. Let me just put my armor on."

Lance widened his eyes at the sight of Shinta placing a round, pink helmet with v-shaped antennae on the forehead while also wearing pink greaves, pink gauntlets, large, pink curved plates on the side of his shoulders and a pink chest place. Lance stared at the latter for a while, which had a set of bumps akin to a female armor's breast protections.

The sound of Lance's chuckling was heard before he burst into loud laughter.

Shinta's cheeks went red in embarrassment from the heckling. "Please don't laugh, that's so mean!" he protested. Lance laughed _harder_. Shinta felt his eyes well up but he buckled up and made a stand. "Stop it, L-Lance!"

"HA, HA, HA, HA, and I thought my Cloth was funny!"

Shinta felt tears escaping his eyes. "S-STOP IT!" he screamed while rubbing his eyes. All of a sudden, his spear chain shot in a wide arc from his right wrist and tried to skewer Lance. Shinta staggered and made his cosmos flow through it to stop Andromeda from hitting Lance.

Lance rolled his eyes and casually side stepped to dodge the deadly metal tip which burst through the sand next to his feet in a vicious manner. "Oh, come on, don't be such a baby, Shinta!"

Shinta panted in fright. It was good that Lance saw the attack coming, but if he hadn't taken control of Andromeda, she would have really hurt him. "I-I'm sorry."

Lance sighed. "You got to learn to ignore these things!"

"B-but it wasn't me!" Shinta protested. Lance didn't seem convinced as he squinted at him. Shinta kept quiet, even if Lance was misinterpreting what happened, Shinta still should have kept the Princess under control. "Lance, why did you change your mind about attacking during the day?"

Lance's eyes shifted. "I was able to locate their patrol routes and bases and I also spotted the leader, but I didn't want to risk an of the others escaping by engaging him too soon." he explained. "I overheard him talking to his men. He said he would be going on one of the patrols tonight, but I couldn't tell which one. Let's move together for now and, if we can't pinpoint the leader, I'll then think of something..." Lance marched away. "Come on, let's go, I want to take down those assholes before sunrise." He ordered. "Don't make any noise and be extra careful. We'll be hunting from now on."

Shinta staggered and picked up his pace.

{======================|0|======================}

Darkness fell down on the island once again, this time absent of storm. Moving through the thick jungle filled with leaves, trees and plants, Lance's red eyes moved left and right like a tiger looking for a prey, only helped by moon light and senses keenly sharpened by four years in Mount Olympus. He carefully moved through the botanical mess, not making the slightest sound and completely ignoring the bugs that seemed to hover more and more around him. He stopped and ducked behind a large rock among the trees to better conceal himself when he reached one of the patrol routes he discovered last the night before.

Almost instantly, a group of black armored men appeared moving along it. Lance's body stopped moving almost to his heartbeat and he made absolutely no sound.

The sound of rustling leaves was heard behind him and a young Saint covered in pink armor came rushing out. A flock of tropical birds was frightened by this and flew upwards from their hiding spot. The black Saints looked up at them and went to full alert. "What was that?" one shouted.

Shinta gasped when enemy eyes started turning to where they were at. Lance instantly grabbed him, pulled him down to the floor and covered his mouth. Shinta's green eyes looked up and he sweated nervously when he saw Lance glaring angrily at him and pressing an index finger against his own lips.

The Black Saint regiment's captain shrugged his shoulders. "It's probably some boar or whatever. They've been running wild in the island ever since that animal cargo boat we pirated a couple of years ago. Let's just go! We have boats to fill, remember?"

Lance patiently waited until the last Black Saint was out of earshot before uncovering Shinta's mouth. "I told you to be careful and not make any noise!" he whispered.

Shinta nodded, embarrassed. "Y-yes, you did. I'm sorry. I'm not used to moving around in this terrain. Andromeda Island is either really rocky or sandy," he excused himself, also keeping his voice down.

Lance narrowed his eyes. "Listen up, Shinta, in the desert it's fine to move fast so long as you take cover behind rocks or dunes or wear camouflage, but in jungles like these there's always something that makes noise around you when you pass through. Leaves, bushes, fallen branches, _birds..." _he emphasized angrily. He then tapped his own head twice. "You have to think like a cat... or a tiger, even! Always think like an animal that hunts in the terrain you're in!"

Shinta nodded rapidly, doing his best to absorb all the useful information. Lance sounded really frustrated, but he was trying to help him, not let out his anger. "O-okay, I get it now, but I was falling behind so I just wanted-"

"It doesn't matter!" Lance interrupted, struggling to keep his tone down. "You can keep track of me with your cosmos, can't you? Don't be scared of losing touch just because there's some new distance between us. It's better to fall behind and wait a while for a safe opportunity to catch up, like when I stop or we enter a less dense area, than just rush straight ahead and alerting the enemy. Do you want to get caught? This is an Assault mission, not Undercover! Our purpose is to strike the enemy by getting around him, not _under_ him!"

Shinta's face went a bit red. One of the arguments the Assault Saints used against Undercover ones in their famous rivalry was that a lot of the Undercover missions involved sexually-themed disguises, such as prostitutes and the sort."Lance, that's really mean. I really didn't want to alert them!" he stood up to the Saint, but the wandering of eyes to the floor in guilt pretty much killed the strength of Shinta's revolt in Lance's eyes. "I just need a bit of time to get used to this and I promise I won't get in your way anymore."

Lance sighed. His new partner, however, really did seem to be clueless in some fundamental stuff. "Shinta, if you're not comfortable with all of this and didn't get any... _internship_," he phrased "in Assault during your Training period, then why did sign up for these missions?"

Shinta's eyes shifted. "Well, it wasn't for anything special, but I needed to move up in the ranks and they told me Assault missions were the best way to get stronger and gain experience. I've been told that I needed Silver-Rank to get these database privileges I really need."

Lance just turned around and crawled forward between the trees. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Shinta blinked, confused. He then remembered that Nam told him that the new rules regarding the database privileges were recent, so much that even Master Guardnia had not been notified yet. Lance probably didn't know about it, either.

Lance signaled at Shinta to follow him and the two of them carefully moved along the dark forest. After a while, they ran into a certain spot of the island where, according to Lance, most of the patrol routes passed through. They took a hiding spot nearby among the vegetation from where they could watch everything.

The Andromeda Saint waited patiently besides Lance. He started feeling his legs cramp and would do anything to move them even just a bit, but Lance's frozen, focused posed inspired him to stay still. Even so, he started wondering how it was possible for a person to stand so still for such a long time. It was like Lance really was a predator or something.

As time went by, several patrols passed by them, but not one included Ray. Shinta still started noticing a couple of things, like how much time there was between each passing patrol.

The Andromeda Saint looked up to the tree branches and saw a flock of birds similar to the one he frightened earlier fly just above them. His frown turned upside down as he saw them chirping. They were so colorful he could still tell the feathers apart in the middle of the night. "They're so pretty. Are tropical birds all like those?" he whispered after making sure the latest passing Black Saints were gone.

The Pegasus Saint's red eyes turned to him. "I'm sorry, what?"

Shinta explained. "Back in Andromeda Island there were no birds. There were barely any animals, in fact.

Lance's eyes rolled back to his path. "Yes, Shinta, they're all very pretty. They also are all pretty fucking noisy every time you startle them around an enemy patrol!" he whispered.

The Andromeda Saint nodded sadly, sensitive to the sarcasm in Lance's voice. He was sure Lance didn't mean anything by it, but it still hurt Shinta a little bit to be having such a hard time proving himself a good partner.

Andromeda's round chain moved up and wiped the tear off his face. "_Oh, don't cry, Shinta. When we get back I'll strangle Saint Lance in his sleep so you won't be sad anymore._"

"NO, don't do it!" he cried out, grabbing the chain. "I already told you to spot being like that." Shinta then turned to Lance and realized the Pegasus Saint was staring at him with his mouth opened. "I'm sorry, Lance. Andromeda sometimes gets a little moody. I don't think she likes you."

Lance blinked. "I'm sorry, what? Your Cloth, Andromeda, doesn't like me?"

Shinta nodded. "Yeah, she was already like that at the Island. There was this Chameleon Amazon Saint whom she really hated that was beheaded by her just because she got too close to the Sacrifice Ritual spot where Andromeda usually lived."

Lance kept on blinking. "…Shinta, are you nuts?! Your Cloth… What the hell are you talking about?!"

Shinta staggered once more, wondering if he said something wrong. "Y-You know…Cloths talk to you, right? And they have personalities and so o-on. What is Pegasus like with you?"

"PEGASUS?!" Lance whispered out loud, outraged that Shinta would say something so ridiculous. "Cloths don't talk, Shinta! Sure, they have cosmos, but in the end, they're just protections!"

Shinta gasped, feeling shocked as he realized something important. "Lance, if you don't mind me asking, I mean…" Shinta hesitated because he didn't want to bring up Kastiel's training, but it really sounded like Lance's lack of education was more severe than he let on. "Here, I'll show it to you." Shinta took off his left gauntlet and laid it on the floor.

Instantly, the round-tipped chain shot upwards and attacked Lance, who screamed and fell on his back. Lance's horrified red eyes saw the chain redirecting its trajectory on its own, without Shinta burning any cosmos or letting out any mental message he could detect, and attempt to skewer him.

Shinta suddenly grabbed the gauntlet and put it back on, causing the chain to stop an inch from piercing Lance's forehead and coiling back around his wrists with a rattling sound. "S-sorry, I just wanted to show you how Cloths have a will of their own."

Lance just laid on the floor, appalled and staring at Shinta's Cloth. "I…I…I mean…The Cloth…"

Shinta knelt down next to him. "It's okay, Lance, If you didn't know that. I was really scared too when I found out about it. My Master had the Cepheus Silver Cloth for a whole year before realizing the person sending him instructions on how to run the island via 6th sense was his own armor, the King Cepheus. He was really worried, too."

Lance slowly calmed his breathing down and started processing this information. Cloths were alive and, more importantly, had a will of their own? What did this mean? "H-how?! How is this even possible?"

Shinta was surprised with Lance's question, which was coming from someone who hanged around supernatural stuff like cosmos. "Well, my Master told me that a race of really skilled alchemists called Lemurians serve Sanctuary. They have dots above their eyes, too, but I don't think I've ever seen one. He told me a long time ago, they built Cloths by implanting souls into them and that's why they're alive."

Lance stared at him. "They put souls into them? Cloths…have souls?" he repeated slowly, having a hard time swallowing this. Lance looked at his own gauntlets and recalled all his experiences with Cloths if Athena, namely the one he encountered in Death Queen Island...

The Pegasus Saint's face went pale.

Shinta saw this. "Lance, what's wrong?"

Lance gulped. "N-nothing, I'm fine!" he assured. He got back up and resumed his vigilance. "I…I just realized something about someone I've met once. It's not important!"

Shinta watched as Lance quietly watched the cross point, knowing for sure somehow that Lance was hiding something, but he was also sure Lance had his reasons so he didn't push the subject. Instead, he decided to go back to their previous topic. "S-so, how is Pegasus with you? Andromeda is really kind with me, but also kind of mean. She's like a big sister who's watching out for me."

Lance opened his mouth to say something, but hesitated. He looked at his own armor. "I don't know! How could I have a fucking clue, Shinta, if I just found out it _speaks_!?" Lance's red eyes then kept staring at his own gauntleted hand with a whole new perspective. Had Pegasus been alive this whole time? Had it been watching him, judging him and moving around on its own ever since he or, better yet, _they_ both left Mount Olympus? Lance put his hand on his forehead and thought about the latest six months he had. Certain bizarre situations started making new sense, particularly the mysterious manner in which he found himself outside the Pegasus Temple after blacking out in the fight with Bellerophon, with the Pegasus Cloth right by his side.

It was then that Lance heard Pegasus' voice for the first time. "_I'm sorry, Lance._" it apologized for keeping itself hidden.

Lance ignored the voice. He would think about all of this later. His red eyes watched one last patrol passing by. "Damn it, this isn't working! Alright, change of plan! Shinta, we're going to have to split up." He then dragged Shinta away from the patrol hotspot so as to plan things more safely. "We're going to hunt them one by one in separate hunting areas. I want you to head south while I head northwest. Your job is twofold; to hunt down as many Black Saints as you can and make sure the ones you can't get catch move north. Get it?"

Shinta nodded obediently, but a pressing concern forced him to question Lance. "All on my own, won't that be dangerous? You told me back at the boat I should stand by your side if it got risky."

Lance, however, didn't seem worried. "Don't worry, Shinta. It was dangerous last night because of the storm and because we didn't know where they moved around, but in these conditions you can take them out just fine by 'dividing and conquering'. If it get's dangerous, find a way to signal it to me. Launch your chain high in the sky or just cause a large tremor or noise, something that will draw my attention."

"I could just send you a mental message with the 6th sense." Shinta suggested.

For some reason, Lance seemed to get uncomfortable all of a sudden. "I'm not sure if you should do that. I'll be keeping my cosmos hidden so you'll have some trouble knowing where to send the mental message." He then decided to make something very clear to Shinta. "Listen, I don't know which one of us will run into Ray. If I do, fine, I'm comfortable that I can take him out, but if you do..."

For the first time, Shinta narrowed his eyes in determination. "Don't worry, Lance you can count on me. I'm ready to fight."

"Listen, Shinta!" Pegasus insisted. "Ray is dangerous. He's managed to last this long against Sanctuary not just because he's strong and scary, but also because he's manipulative. It's just something that comes with the job of leading backstabbing murderers..." Lance commented with a clear hint of spite in his voice.

This didn't pass by Shinta's senses. In fact, every time Lance talked about Black Saints, he always sound like he considered them the lowest scum on the face of the Earth. Shinta wondered if there was any special reason for Lance's disdain, even if Black Saints really did awful things with their cosmos.

He then closed in on Shinta to make sure he heard all he had left to say. "If he finds himself in danger he will try to trick you! Don't believe anything he says and fight tooth and nail to take him out! Do NOT let your guard down!"

Shinta hesitated for a moment, still half wondering how Lance came to despise Black Saints so much, but knowing he knew better, the pink-armored Saint agreed. "Alright, I promise I'll be careful."

Lance seemed to stare at him for a while, as if suspicious of his resolve."They will hide themselves, so use your chains to alert yourself of their presence so as to help you hunt them down." Lance then knelt down and drew the island on the ground with his finger. He then sectioned the southern parts. "Don't leave this area until all of it is entirely secured! Everything depends on you not letting a single one escape your eye. Don't worry about any of them heading north from your area so as to reach their escape hangar, because they'll be just stepping on my field."

Shinta nodded nervously. This was it. In short, his job was to hunt everyone that moved south, away from the area Lance could cover, and to be careful if he had to face Ray. The tactic sounded dangerous, but Lance surely knew what he was doing. "Alright, do you want me to head towards you then?"

Lance's eyes shifted. "Sure, if your Cloth doesn't like me, you might as well use her to track me down, too, as I'll try to keep my cosmos hidden." He then headed off.

Shinta waved at him. "Okay, good luck, Lance. Be careful."

"Whatever! Just don't get yourself killed!" Lance then went through the woods, silent like a cat.

Shinta lowered his hand and thought about his next move as he headed south. He made sure to keep his cosmos hidden. Unfortunately, until Andromeda's chains kicked in, he wouldn't know for sure if what he was doing was any good.

Still, Andromeda interfered soon, but not to alert him of any Black Saint's presence. "_You are so dumb sometimes, you know?_"

Shinta slowed down and looked at his chains. "What? Dumb, why?"

The spear tip pointed itself at his face as if to address him. "_Why would that man want to split up the group like this? It doesn't make any sense. He's using you, Shinta!_"

"Well… maybe so, but I'm sure it's all part of the plan. He needs me to make sure none of the Black Saints in the south flee. The're a risk that-" The round tip suddenly smacked Shinta's forehead. "OW! What did you do that for?"

Andromeda wiggled her chains around wildly to express her frustration with Shinta's naiveté. "_You stupid boy; what __risk__? Didn't he __s__cout the whole island last night? You were even so worried he would get hurt. __If he's able to move around the island so silently and retrieve so much data about the enemy, a Silver Rank like him would be easily able to take down most of the Black Saints before they even realized what was going on. Yet he sends a noisy blockhead like you to cover almost half of the island by yourself?!__ He's lying to you, Shinta!_"

Shinta felt small tears of pain escape his eyes as he rubbed his reddened forehead. "He is? But…"

"_You're just too lucky that I'm here to watch your back, Shinta. A princess such as I would never let her dear 'little brother' fall in such danger. __Oh, the world is just so perilous towards kind-hearted people like you and me._" She lamented. "_Quick! We must kill everyone on this island so as to ensure our safety. Remember, my father, the King, will be very upset if filthy Black Saints got their hands on me. You don't want your Master's Cloth angry at you, do you__?_"

Shinta looked around a bit in fear. Had Lance really tricked him somehow? What was going on? Maybe Andromeda was overreacting, but some of the things she said made sense. Lance moved around so well in the terrain and none of the Black Saints

But Shinta shook his head firmly as he got to his senses. "No! I'm sure that is not what is going on. And even if it was, going around killing people is not the solution. Let's just follow Lance's request, okay?"

"_Argh, you are hopeless!_" Andromeda complained, but she then decided to sweeten her voice as she knew she would only scare away the young Saint by being harsh. "_Shinta, if you were nice to me and followed my lead instead of that man, you'd be doing a really sweet thing for your Ne-san._"

"But, I thought you told me never to call you that." Shinta recalled. "You said it was silly and-"

Andromeda's round-tipped chain wrapped itself around his neck in an endearing manner. Sacrificing a bit of power in their relationship was just what she needed to ascertain her dominance over her owner. "_I'll start making an exception just-for-you…_" she accentuated "_if you are kind to your big sister, that is._"

Shinta thought hard about it, but it didn't take long for him to make the right choice. He made his cosmos run through her Cloth to take away control over her chains. He made them drop to the floor again and apologized. "Sorry, Andromeda, but I got to listen to Lance. He's counting on me to defeat the Black Saints. I'm sure this is all part of his plan."

Princess Andromeda didn't answer immediately, probably due to how indignant she felt with his answer. "_…Fine!_" she bitterly said before falling silent. She did, though, groan to herself. Was Shinta just that thick-headed and idealistic or was the Princess frankly losing her touch at manipulation? Mom and Dad _had_ always been better at controlling people. Either way, the red eyed Pegasus Saint would pay for being such insolence!

Shinta's eyes darted left and right as he dashed across the forest. Everything in the surrounding area had been really quiet for a while. He halted his march when he reached the southernmost parts of the island and waited a bit. It wasn't long until his chains started rattling around.

Andromeda's spear tip chain rose up and started circling around itself like a broken compass. Shinta widened his eyes. "_They__'re__ surround__ing__ me._" He realized.

A second was spent in silence, before leaves began rustling among the trees and Shinta spotted, from the corner of his eye, shadows moving quickly and stealthily within the forest. He tossed his defensive sphere chain before pulling it around himself so it would form a circle on the floor. The Bronze Saint's eyes kept moving left to right, trying to keep up with his enemies' movements, but the Black Saints moved far too fast for Shinta's senses, making the boy sweat with nervousness.

"_If they've trapped me that means I won't be able to join Lance. What should I do_?" Shinta decided to try his own judgment. "_I think I'll just hold off as long as I can and hopefully I'll get a chance to __defeat them quickly. With any luck, I'll be able to do so without alerting the whole island so I can keep hunting the rest._" Shinta then detected a movement to his left. He pulled for his offensive spear chain and launched it at his foe. "I see you! **Nebula Chain**!"

Andromeda's chain shot forward like a serpent and stabbed through the trees and leaves, striking one of the Black Saints who screamed and fell down to the floor.

Before Shinta could check if he injured the man seriously, several shadows jumped out from the woods into the clearance, surrounding him from all sides. Shinta counted at least twenty men growling In anger or giggling like predators at him, all wearing simple, black colored armors akin to foot soldier equipment, though more rudimentary and having a more medieval style than Greek one. Several of them carried spears, but most seemed to content themselves with dangerous looking spiked gauntlets. From the way they smiled, they seemed confident in their imminent victory.

One man stood out by being the only one with a serious look and being, at least, twice as big as the others and wearing no helmet over his black curly hair. Asides from the lack of head protection, he carried a heavier set of armor than the rest of them that showed off scars and muscles, intimidating Shinta with his imposing stature.

"Well, look what we got here, boys!" said Ray, obviously the leader that they were sent to capture. "Looks like a Saint took the wrong turn to his little church!"

The man laughed, joined by all of his men, certain that they were sure to win. Shinta, facing his first genuinely dangerous situation in the open field, sweated nervously. He took comfort in the thought that Lance had his back, or so he hoped, and that his chains could attack multiple foes at once, but the truth was that things didn't look good and he had no idea what Lance was doing, meaning that he wasn't sure he could count on him to assure their victory.

Shinta raised his fists and added another layer to his defensive circle. "Please, give up and surrender yourselves. I do not wish to hurt you." The crowd around him burst into laughter as a response. Ray, in particular, seemed especially amused. "I'm serious!" Shinta enforced.

"GET HIM!"

A loud roar was heard all around him and most of the men charged forward with weapons in hand. Shinta narrowed his eyes and resigned himself. "I'm sorry, but I have to take you down." As soon as the first Black Saint stepped on his defensive circle, his arm instantly pulled for his offensive chain. "**NEBULA CHAIN!**"

There was a loud scream mixed with the sound of shattering metal and blood spray. Ray gasped and stepped back along with his remaining men as his first wave of attack got torn to shreds by what looked like a metallic chain whipping around the area. Each impact seemed to be accompanied by a small pink-colored flare, as if the chains were electrified.

Ray watched his men fall to the ground unconscious and with the armor they worked so hard to obtain completely wrecked. Shinta's offensive chain was pulled back around his wrist. The Black Saint leader gritted teeth. "Fucking Saint…"

Shinta held his own against his glare. "I warned you, I do not wish to fight. Please surrender and let yourselves be captured."

"H-he took down seven of us just like that!" One of the grunts commented.

Ray looked around the fallen bodies and noticed they were all still breathing. Comparing it to Shinta's warnings, Ray realized that this Saint seemed to be avoiding fatal blows. He then looked back at Shinta, who seemed to quiver slightly every time Ray made eye contact with him. "He, he, well, well, looks like we got ourselves an idealistic one... or a really amateurish one" He commented. "I was sort of expecting someone a bit more resolute in killing Athena's filthy enemies despite how cute you looked."

The Andromeda Saint widened his eyes a bit. There was something weird about what Ray said. "You were… expecting? Wait, you knew my face before you got here?" Shinta then felt a shiver run down his back as several of the grunts started flashing slight grins. Shinta gulped. "_What's going on here? Why did so many of them head this way?_" Ray then signaled a small group of his men to approach Shinta from the right. Wary of his chains now, they chose to throw a couple of small spears his way while charging ahead. "**Rolling Defense!**" Shinta's defensive chain, which was lying on the floor, suddenly exploded in action, rapidly rising from the ground and rapidly twirling around Shinta. The javelins struck the rapidly moving links but they just bounced off immediately. Shinta adjusted the pattern of his chains twirls so as to create an opening in his own defenses that would allow a counter attack. "**Nebula Chain!**"

The Black soldiers gasped in fright when they saw the spear-like chain shoot from between the twirls of the defensive ones straight at them. The first Black Saint was taken out when it slashed him through the shoulder plate, but the others had stepped back enough to avoid being hit.

One of them, slightly larger than the others and confident in his strength, then rushed forward and grasped the exposed offensive weapon's links. "GOT IT!" He then tried to pull it with all his might. "You're mine, kid!"

Shinta gasped. "No, don't do that! It will-"

Shinta was too late in his warning, as Andromeda's offensive chain suddenly burst into dark pink electricity that shocked everyone around it. The Black Saint who grabbed it screamed and dropped to the floor limply as he felt ten thousand volts jolting through his body. The others jumped away, either injured or with newfound fear of the dreadful Andromeda Saint.

Without lowering his defenses, Shinta lamented for his death. "No, you shouldn't have tried to grab my chain. My Cloth has the most aggressive instincts of all the Bronze Cloths. When in contact with my foe, Andromeda's chains turn my cosmos that is flowing through it into electrical cosmos and shocks you on its own, even if I don't have the Lightning element." He explained in an attempt to reduce their morale. "Please, surrender yourselves. Fighting me is pointless and futile. There's no need for any of you to get hurt anymore."

Several of the Black Saints started backing off and trembling in fear. "S-Shit, what do we do, Ray?" one said.

"This is way more than we bargained for!"

"Let's go!" another screamed.

Ray also had his eyes widened in shock at how impenetrable and dangerous the Andromeda Cloth sounded. Still, he had dealt with Saints before. He knew that if the Cloth was a problem, you should attack the Saint somehow. Ray then had an idea. "Retreat for the dock."

One of his men turned to him. "What? What do you mean?"

"Go meet the others and our contact and tell them to get off the island. It's not worth sacrificing the cargo and our lives just to capture this kid. I'll just handle things here and catch up with you."

The Black Saints seemed to hesitate, but eventually nodded in obedience and ran off into the woods towards their comrades at the hideout. Shinta widened his eyes in surprise. "Wait, what are you doing?" He then narrowed his eyes and adjusted his fighting pose, wondering if the leader just decided to engage him on his own. "Don't think I'm scared of you. I'm as ready to fight with you as with all the others."

To Shinta's shock, however, Ray just got on his knees and raised his hands. "No, wait, I give up!" he screamed. "I don't want to fight! Just…just take me out of here, away from these people!"

Shinta widened his eyes in surprise. "W-what do you mean?" he asked, bewildered.

"I get it, okay?" Ray confessed. "Being a Black Saint is bad! I surrender. If you want to take me to Sanctuary and force me to pray to Athena, fine! Just don't kill me!" he begged as he closed his eyes and put his hands on his own nape.

Shinta dropped his chains to the floor while still maintaining his distance. "You want to give up? But," Shinta then narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Why did you tell your men to escape if you want to give up?"

"It's the higher-ups." Ray explained. "If my men saw me surrendering, they would tell them all about it and they'd have my whole unit wiped out! Please, don't let them kill me."

Shinta gasped. "Oh, I see, so you have a Boss and you're scared that he'll get angry if you surrendered your whole unit." Shinta, however, shook his head, reminded of Lance's warnings. "NO! You must be lying. How could I trust you? Lance told me about you and said you were a dangerous person."

Ray practically dug his head into the ground in surrender and pointed at one of his fallen comrades. "That guy has special shackles on him that we were going to use on you." He then raised his wrists above his bowing head. "You can arrest me with them if you want. Just don't let them get to me, okay?"

The green haired Saint looked over to the indicated spot and indeed saw a pair of shackles strapped to the fallen Black Saint's belt. He smiled in happiness that Ray decided to listen to reason. "You made the right choice. Thank you for surrendering. I have to tie you up, but I'll take you to safety as soon as I can." He promised. Shinta then took the shackles to his hands. If they intended to use them on Shinta, then they must have something special about them that worked on Saints.

As he analyzed it, Shinta realized the shackle had thin stardust veins which looked like glowing silver lines similar to those stardust protection marks he had seen in some places in Andromeda Island on the side that would be pressed against the victim's skin. Stardust was a component used to craft and repair Cloths and it had the amazing ability to absorb or conduct cosmos, depending on how it was crafted. Shackles with stardust, then, despite being done primarily of iron, lead or steel, would be capable of safely arresting a Saint or Black Saint.

Shinta turned to Ray. "Turn around, okay? I have to restrain your wrists." He asked. Ray obeyed and presented to him his hands around his back. Shinta smiled. He was just so happy that everything went well. He managed to avoid killing most of the Black Saints, took down a large number of them that would definitely prove his usefulness in missions and, more importantly, he would be able to prove to Lance that, despite enemies, people could still be reasoned with.

Then Andromeda' Cloths' offensive chain suddenly pointed at the Black Saint. "_NO, don't trust him!_" she screamed.

All of a sudden, the earth shook at the same time a thunderous sound of an explosion was heard far off on the island.

Shinta stumbled forward in fright and Ray was caught by surprise, but simply adjusted his plan to this by suddenly taking the stardust shackle away from Shinta and managing to snap it around one of his wrists. Shinta gasped and felt the whole cosmos in his left arm and chain get sucked up by the object. In a reflex, he struck Ray's chest with a kick and whipped forward with his offensive chain, but Ray leaped backwards the dodge the chain.

Shinta grabbed the shackle on his wrist and tried to get it off, but all the cosmos he burned around his hand to try to break the piece of thick metal seemed to just disappear in contact with the object as if sucked by it. He sweated nervously. "No, you tricked me!"

Ray laughed out loud. "I don't know what that explosion was, but then again it helped big time by distracting the two of you. After all, I didn't expect your Cloth to be able to warn you about my intentions." He unsheathed his huge sword and charged straight ahead. "You're MINE!"

Shinta stepped back and tried to swing his defensive chain forward, but it just whipped around carelessly without stretching our listening to the commands of his cosmos. The Andromeda Saint widened his eyes in alarm. The way the shackle was snapped around his wrist was causing it to absorb the cosmos flowing in the defensive chain.

Ray easily deflected the flaying defensive chain with his weapon and then swung it sideways. Shinta leaned his head down so as to dodge and then attacked. "**Nebula Chain!**"

The Black Saint leader screamed as his body was slashed around countless times by a rapidly moving chain which successive strikes cut several parts of his armor apart. "GAH! Why, you fucking BRAT!" he screamed as he backed off from the Saint to get away from the blows. If he could only get close to the Saint, but his offensive chain was dangerous even without the support of his defensive one.

Shinta jumped into the air and whipped his chain downwards "Go, **Great Capture**!" He shouted. His chain's flying speed seemed to gain a sudden boost and aimed to wrap itself around Shinta's foe.

Ray, however, reacted quickly by crashing his sword's edge on the chain's links, causing it to wrap around his weapon. He then pulled his sword back with a giggle so as to catch the airborne Saint. Shinta yelped in fright at the sudden danger as he found himself flying straight at the Black Saint's large hand. He shouldn't have jumped.

Ray's arm glowed with cosmos and tried to knock out Shinta with a blow from his large elbow. Shinta crossed his wrists and blocked Ray's arm with the shackle around his left wrist, blocking the blow and absorbing the cosmos. Shinta then swung his offensive chain at it. "**Spiral Duct!**" he cried. When he landed on the floor he then pulled his arm back, causing the chain to tense suddenly. Ray staggered as he felt his sword arm being encircled by the offensive chain before it tightened around his limb and shocked his body with ten thousand volts of electricity. He screamed and felt to his knee, dropping his weapon as his fingers went numb. "Stop now! If you don't give up, the shocks could kill you!"

Surprisingly, though, Ray started chuckling between his grunts of pain. His other hand suddenly snapped forward and caught Shinta's neck. He gasped for air and opened his eyes wide in fear and pain. "GOT YOU!" Ray laughed out loud as the Andromeda Cloth attempted to shock him even harder, but the large Black Saint's body seemed to be immune to the shocks "HA, HA, HA! Did you think these little sparks would hurt a big guy like me? If you attacked me with those chains, it would be a different story, but these weak electric shocks don't hurt at all! You're mine now!"

Shinta cried in pain and grabbed Ray's fingers to try to move them, but the Black Saint's grip was too strong. A large fist then exploded on his body, making him scream and cough out blood. Ray kept on punching him. The Black Saint's blows were so strong that Shinta could feel his whole body shake despite his armor protecting him.

Ray laughed. "So, ready to give up yet?"

Shinta shook his head as best as he could with his neck being held so tightly. "N-no, I won't give up! Even if you ambushed me, Lance is counting on me to help h-him."

Ray laughed even harder. "HA, HA, HA, HA, you sure are stupid, you know?" he mocked. "Lance is counting on you to beat me? HAH! Lance's the one who set this whole thing up!"

Shinta's eyes widened. "W-what? What are you saying?"

Ray looked over his shoulder as he sensed someone arriving. "He's our contact from Sanctuary. He has been supplying us with merchandise for a while now right under Sanctuary's nose, isn't that right?" Lance then emerged from the woods and joined the two of them. "Pegasus Lance?"

Shinta's green eyes widened in horror at the sight of his mission partner standing there. "L-Lance?"

Pegasus Lance's red eyes looked around. He saw the fallen Black Saints and how injured both Shinta and Ray were. Ray looked like he just went through a meat grinder, as he presented several cuts around his body as well as shock marks, undoubtedly from Shinta's chain attacks. Shinta himself trembled in pain as his neck was held by Ray, was bleeding from his mouth and had several cracks on his chest plate. "You couldn't beat him?" he asked out loud. Shinta wasn't sure if he was talking to him or to Ray.

Ray assumed the latter. "I'm working on breaking him, but he's a tough nugget. He took down several of my men! I'm beginning to think he might not be work the selling price!" he explained. "What was that just now, that explosion?"

"It was the hangar." Lance said.

Ray widened his eyes. "What?!"

"The Saints are coming. They are sending unexpected reinforcements. The ambushed us at the hangar. I managed to take them down, but the rest of your men are all dead." Lance explained. He then turned to Shinta. "They must have been tailing this kid since they knew he would be working with me. Just finish that kid off so we can get the hell out of here."

Ray stared at Lance in shock. Did he mean to tell him that half his crew and all his spoils were dead all because of the green-haired squirt. He gritted teeth in fury and tightened his grip around Shinta's neck "You fucking Saint! I'll kill you!"

Shinta screamed in pain and tried to free himself. His survival instincts kicked in and he started punching and kicking the Black Saint as best as he could, but the hulking man didn't even bulge. "N-no!" he cried. "L-LANCE, help me, please!" However, Lance just sat back in a nearby rock and enjoyed the show. "L-Lance?!"

"Forget it, kid, don't you get it?" Ray mocked. "Lance is on my side, not yours!" Ray's hand turned into a flare of white cosmos and crashed against Shinta's chest plate.

The Andromeda Saint felt his stomach turn around and his chest armor cracking. Blood rushed up his throat into his mouth and his arms went limp. Shinta felt tears rolling down his face as he was betrayed so horribly and felt his windpipe being crushed.

All of a sudden, someone grabbed Ray's arm and pulled it down. Before Ray could even properly react, a white gauntlet's knuckles suddenly exploded on his face, making his world go blank and his body fall back to the floor. Ray screamed and dropped Shinta to the ground.

Shinta coughed heavily and grabbed his throat, feeling a sensation of great relief as his lungs stopped complaining for oxygen. He tried to look up by saw only a spinning world of Lance confronting a fallen Ray. The huge Black Saint looked up to him in shock. "W-what?! What the FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!" Ray got up and looked at his own hand to see blood from his face. "You FUCKING SAINT!"

Lance crackled his knuckles. "Looks like my plan worked. Since your Black Saints all thought they had everything under control and that I was on your side, all the ones that escaped Shinta or didn't go after me met at the hangar."

Ray stared at him in confusion. "The explosion…" he realized. "You said you would go to the hanger."

Lance's red eyes rolled in the direction of their escape hangar. "Oh, that. Don't worry, that was just the sound of your rafts and cargo blowing up. As for your contact in North Africa,... I'm afraid he was dealt by a Silver Saint a couple of months back. I just posed as him, that's all."

The Ray's face twisted into a glare of hatred. He charged straight at him. "YOU FUCKING BITCH! I'LL SNAP YOUR NECK-"

"**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST!**"

Ray felt a gigantic, concentrated force hitting his chest like a bullet. The powerful impact shot him straight through the air and he was dragged through the air towards the woods. Several crashes were heard as trees failed to stop his body's flight until his back collided with a huge rock, shattering it. Ray fell forward unconscious, only for his torso to land on Lance's shoulder. This all happened before Shinta pick himself up from the ground.

Shinta coughed blood on the ground and let go of his sore throat. His face was reddened and he was panting heavily, his chains lying on the floor as if reflecting the state he was in. He looked over to where Lance punched Ray through the trees and saw a scenario of fallen trunks and shattered rock that made his green eyes widen in shock.

Pegasus Lance carried Ray to where Shinta was to drop the unconscious man before him, as if presenting a hunted animal. "See? This is how you do it!"

But Shinta ignored his words. "L-Lance..." he said "You...you saved me..."

"Get over yourself!" Lance answered, coldly. "I only did it because I was told to bring you back alive."

Shinta's brain started wrapping itself around the situation. "T-Thank you! Thank you, Lance." he repeated, wiping the tears and blood off his face. "I knew you hadn't betrayed me. Oh Goddess, I can't believe what happened. He tricked me. I… I almost died!"

"Let that be a lesson to you, Shinta. These bastards will stop at nothing to kill you. He was ready to snap your neck just for all the trouble you caused him."

Shinta however, didn't seem to want to listen to this. "I…I don't get it. What happened? What was that explosion? Why did Ray attack you? Why did he say you were on his side?" Shinta's eyes welled up as he took the whole experience in. "O-oh, thank you, Lance!"

Lance shrugged and pushed Shinta away. "Here, wipe yourself properly! What kind of man cries so easily?" he asked as he handed him over a pack of tissues. "Look, Shinta, this particular group of Saints has been a problem to Sanctuary because they've been finding ways to always escape with their cargo. Even if a few of them got caught, the rest would just continue their operations by jumping from base to base. I was told, though, that a contact they've been using to get supplies had been finally caught by Sanctuary in southern Spain, so I had the idea to pose as him using his credentials to get on these bastards' good side."

Shinta nodded. "O-oh, I see. So that's why they thought you were their friend? But why do all of that, then?"

"Ordinarily, I would have no problem taking on all of them." the red-eyed Saint confessed. "However, large as the group was, it simply was not possible for me to engage them directly without a few of them escaping in the chaos. I wanted to capture _all _of them and put an end to this nonsense as quickly as possible." He explained. "So, last night, when I said I was scouting, I was actually meeting with them and getting them to send some of their men after you so that it would be easier for me to ambush the ones that stayed in their hideout and arrest all of them. That explosion the two of you heard was from all the fighting I was doing and from the fact that I blew up their boats! I would then backtrack and take down the remaining ones that you diverted away. It was all a matter of dividing and conquering."

Shinta ohed, shocked at Lance's intelligence. It actually sounded like a good plan to make sure none of the Black Saints escaped in the fighting. So, all that time, Lance was in complete control of the situation? That was amazing! Shinta, however, scratched his head as something didn't fit right. "Wait, why didn't you tell me any of this?" he protested. If he had known of the details of Lance's plan, maybe fighting the Black Saints wouldn't be such a scary experience.

Lance suddenly took off Shinta's helmet and slapped his head. Shinta yelped in pain and rubbed his green hair. "Because I didn't want to risk the Black Saint finding out what was going on through you! Apparently, I was right because that guy managed to get a drop on you!" Shinta felt more tears trying to escape his eye lids, but he sucked it up. He imagined Lance would just get madder if Andromeda kept on crying. "By the way, don't worry about the ones you let escape, because they all went straight to me since they thought they could trust me." Lance then pointed at Shinta's hand "And why the hell do you have a stardust shackle on your wrist?"

"Oh, that, uh..." Shinta hesitated. Lance narrowed his eyes with this and the Andromeda Saint's face went red with shame. "He... tricked me into letting my guard down by surrendering." Shinta then quivered as Lance narrowed his eyes at him. "He…he said he was sorry and didn't want to fight. He sounded really sincere and... and I…I fell for it…and…and he managed to get this on my arm." He murmured. Shinta then closed his eyes and covered his face, knowing how angry Lance would now be.

Lance just groaned and shook his head. "I told you not to be naïve, Shinta! See what happens when you try to reason with these assholes?! Your fucking pacifism almost got you killed today!" Lance then saw Shinta's eyes struggling to hold back tears. "Oh, for God's sake, let's just get things over with here so that I can go help you take that off!"

Shinta nodded like a good little boy. Still, as he realized just how many Black Saints that Lance took down, he couldn't help but be amazed."Wow, Lance, I still can't believe you managed to defeat so many foes. You are so strong! You really must be as good as a Silver Saint." he admired.

"Yeah, whatever, let's just clean this place, okay?" Lance placed two fingertips against Ray's neck and felt a weak pulse. "He's alive." revealed Lance, who lifted the man to his chest height by the collar and placed his hand in a chop position against his neck. "I'll finish him, don't worry."

"No! Don't kill him!" yelled Shinta, reaching for Lance's wrist and grabbing it, forcefully "He needs help!"

Lance looked at the boy, shocked with his defiance and mercy. "Are you crazy?" he asked, shoving his wrist away from Shinta's hand "He tried to kill you! He wanted to kidnap you and send you to child slavery, Shinta! He murders, robs, pillages and he supplies guns to very dangerous people! He's scum that deserves to die!"

"How can you say that, Lance? Every person has the right to live, even the bad people! We don't have to kill him." Lance struggled to free himself, but Shinta set his foot down. "No, he needs help, and if we can save him, then it's our duty to do so! Besides..."

Lance narrowed his eyes, losing his patience with Shinta's pacifism. "Besides, what?!"

"You said he has connections to slavery, right? What would happen to all the poor people he took away if you were to kill the only person who could tell us about all the traffic details?" he asked. Lance widened his eyes in shock. Sensing that he reminded Lance of something important, Shinta pressed on. "Back in Undercover assignments I took in my fifth year, I saw that it was a really awful situation. If you kill Ray for no reason, you'd be condemning all those people he hurt forever."

Lance stared at him for a good while in shock. His red eyes looked down on ray for a while and Shinta saw his partner sweating in fear, as if he realized he almost screwed up something big time. Eventually, Lance dropped Ray to the ground. "Shit!... You're right, what was I thinking?!"

Shinta placed a hand on his shoulder. Lance must have really been too used to fighting Black Saints and the sort. No wonder he wouldn't think about stuff like this. "It's okay, Lance, every body makes mistakes-"

Lance shrugged him off. "I'm fine!... Damn it!" he said to himself. How could he make such a mistake? How could he have been so blinded by his own anger and how disgusted he was with Ray and his kind? If Shinta hadn't pointed out that important fact, he would have just killed Ray and Lance would be no better than the people he fought. "No better than a hateful murderer..." he whispered.

Shinta watched Lance murmur these things to himself in deep thought. "Lance, is something wrong?"

Pegasus then finally broke the silence. "Why are you so damn idealistic? Don't you know the world doesn't give a shit if you're a good or a bad person? Either way, Athena says Hades will send you to hell for stepping on ants, so why bother even trying!" he argued. He then narrowed his eyes. "Besides, helping someone who'll kill you on sight is not being a good person, but being just plain stupid! People won't admire you for your attitude, either. They'll just smile at you while taking advantage of your foolishness. Do you really want that for yourself?"

Shinta took a bit to answer. He understood very well why Lance would be so skeptic of him. Shinta wasn't stupid, after all. He knew that there were very bad people in the world, but it was just not in his nature to give up hope in everyone's better halves. "No, but I don't want to kill anyone. That would be awful and make me a worse person than them, right?" he answered, almost reflecting Lance's earlier thoughts on the matter.

Lance opened his mouth to say something. Nothing came out, though, and the Pegasus Saint just sighed. "Let's just go. I'm fucking tired of this island!" He then realized something else. "And since I was counting on killing all these bastards, I sent the boat away so I guess we got to carry all these assholes by ourselves back to Sanctuary. Just great, isn't it?"

{======================|0|======================}

**Several hours later, at Sanctuary Town's harbor**

{======================|0|======================}

It was nighttime already but the docks were still filled with people moving around, particularly a group of foot soldiers who was trying to keep the Black Saints that Shinta and Lance brought over in line. The Pegasus Saint sighed in exhaustion. "I just hope they don't force me to split the reward with you." he commented to Shinta.

The green haired youth noticed how frustrated Lance sounded. "Lance, did I do that badly? I know I screwed up with Ray, but-"

"Save it! I'm not in the mood to have that kind of talk. At least you didn't get yourself killed. I guess kind people don't always die on the job." Pegasus interrupted. His gaze then softened in regret of his past. "_Or all around me, for that matter..." _Lance then shook his head in self reprehension. He shouldn't be thinking about _that_._ "Damn it, this exhaustion is really getting to me. I can't wait until this is over and Nam get's this kid off my back._"

Shinta thought hard on what to say, but came up with very little other than asking Lance if wanted to hang out, something he would definitely refuse. "_He always seems to have something on his head, even outside a mission. I wonder what he thinks about._" he wondered. Shinta tried to do the math with what Lance just commented about kind people. "_Maybe someone kind died on him once. Maybe that's why he doesn't want kind people around him on missions._"

Sagitta Nam stared at the captured Black Saints with the mission's report in his hands and a bewildered look on his face. He still couldn't believe their mission went so smoothly. "Well, is this all or do you have anything else to report?" he asked, trying to sound as friendly as possible so as to not antagonize Lance in any way. If there was one thing he learned about dealing with Lance was that you should sound the least like you're trying to boss him around.

"We later found a hidden port in the north side of the island." said Lance "There we found general supplies, charts of several South European and North African ports and that of the Sanctuary, funds and weapons along with a two large transport vessels equipped with long-range transmission radios and several escape jet boats. Their cargo included mostly weaponry and cocaine but their leader also confided to me that they have connections to clients seeking sexual or labor slavery."

Nam snapped out of it and looked over the Black Saints the foot soldiers. The leader, Ray, seemed to be thrashing around the most. "LET ME GO! I'LL KILL THAT FUCKING PEGASUS! GYARGH!"

The foot soldiers took him away to the Stardust Prison located near Cape Sounion. "Wow, I'm impressed. It's hard to believe you two were able to take down so many Black Saints that were giving us so much trouble."

Lance squinted at him. "You _know_ I've handled worse!" he reminded the Silver Saint. "So what's the deal, Nam? Can I get my solo missions back or what?"

Nam quivered. He never liked working with Lance. "Listen, I've been trying to find a way to pull Shinta into another team. I talked to the other Silvers, and then directly to the Golden Zodiac to see if someone had a position Shinta would be useful enough to take him out of this mess and leave you alone, Lance. I…literally tried everything I could, but…" Nam gulped. "The Pope's decision is final. I'm afraid you two are stuck together."

"WHAT?!" Lance shouted.

"What do you mean, Saint Nam?" Shinta asked.

Nam was unable to answer, because neither Lance or Shinta, or even everyone at the port expected the most powerful man in Sanctuary to arrive with a small entourage of his guards and interfere in the conversation. "I see you two have returned." said none other than the Pope. He took the report from Nam's hands and read it. "Well, Lance, it seems you have completed this assignment as expected."

Shinta gasped and got on his knee. "Your Holiness, you're here!"

Nam also stepped back, saluted the Holy Father of Sanctuary. "Your Holiness, what are you doing here?"

Lance in contrast, pointed his finger at him. "YOU, are you responsible for this?!

Shion ignored Lance and turned to the humble green-haired boy who didn't dare to even look up at him. "And who is this fine young lad? I trust you are Andromeda Shinta, the recently promoted Saint from Cepheus Guardnia's tutelage."

Shinta nodded quickly. He still couldn't believe the Pope was there, talking to him. "Y-yes, your Holiness." He looked up to his mask. "It is an honor to meet you."

Shion saw Shinta's face directly for the first time. He saw the green eyes, the green curly hair and the look of innocence and naiveté in his face, like someone who honestly believed in the good in the world. "Just like in the picture…" he commented to himself. "Your Master spoke very highly of you in his letter, Saint Shinta. I trust you worked well with Lance."

"Yes, your Holiness! There were no incidents, your Holiness!" he repeated, nervous as he was. "Saint Lance was incredible. He took down three or four times more foes than I did!"

Shion's masked turned to Lance, who almost seemed to be growling at him like an angry dog. "Is that so? Impressive, and he didn't kill anyone this time, either." He commented.

"FUCK YOU, OLD MAN!" Lance shouted. For a second, several eyes turned to him, but the Pope's guards just signaled at the people to move on. "Don't talk as if I just go around killing innocent people for fun! You know that's not true."

"…Yes, the reports of your missions have always been _very_ detailed about who died at the hands of whom." Shion once again commented with a bit of cynicism in his voice. "But that is beside the point. From what I understand, you desire your solo missions back and Saint Nam wants Shinta to be pulled to another group, is that correct? Well, I have to say that that is a ridiculous idea." Everyone's eyes turned to him in surprise. "Why, Lance and Saint Shinta seem to have worked very well together according to this report, taking down a group of Black Saints that has had the hands of the Silver Saint division full for quite some time. Combined with the fact that the target was captured by Saint Lance, rather than killed, I'd say it was an excellent idea to team him up with Saint Andromeda. I'm sure you'll both have a good influence on each other."

Nam gasped. "B-but, your Holiness-"

Shion raised his hand to signal a halt to all discussion. "Saint Nam, I have made my decision. Continue to forward all missions to Saint Lance and register Saint Shinta as his mission partner for all of them."

"WHAT?" Lance asked, breaking his facade with a revolted glare. "NO, NO FUCKING WAY! I'm not letting you push me into working with anyone, let alone someone so naïve and so fucking new at this!"

"Well, Lance, that is just a matter of teaching him the ropes, right? No, I'm sure he'll be a wonderful ally in your assault missions," argued Shion.

Lance stared at him in disbelief. "Why are you forcing this so much?! He's too fucking green! He'll slow me down and get himself killed. He can't keep up with me."

"Well, Lance, there must be a misunderstanding, because, you see…" Shion then looked back at the mission report Lance wrote. "It says right here he took down over fifteen Black Saint who had him cornered before facing off against the leader himself and doing fairly well before being defeated, and I trust absolutely in your reports, Pegasus." he said. "I'm anxious to see how you'll do in your future assignments, which you will take along with Shinta, of course." added Shion, who couldn't help but smirk behind his mask at the look on Lance's face.

Lance lost his mind. He tightened his fist and rushed forward. "Why, you fucking HAG-"

Shion yawned, raised his finger and unleashed telekinetic wave that paralyzed the attacking Saint, who then just stood there, frozen in a charging stance he couldn't get out of.

"What the… What did you do to me?!" Lance screamed.

Shion looked at his watch. "Oh, look at the time. I must be going for I have much to do. Saint Nam; please make sure to process all the paperwork. Have a good night, and may Athena be with the three of you." He wished before he and his guards marched off towards the Golden Zodiac.

The telekinetic hold on Lance wore off and he fell to the floor as his frozen momentum caught up with him. Shinta helped him back up. "Are you okay, Lance?"

Lance struck his tum with his elbow. Shinta yelped. "BACK OFF!" he then turned to Sagitta. "This is bullshit, Nam! The Pope can't do this to me! Just sign him off to another team! Do whatever you can to get my solo missions back."

Nam shook his head. "Lance, I can't do anything against the Pope's commands, even if they're bat-shit insane! I don't like this either, but he's the one running Sanctuary, remember? Look, I know Shinta's a bit green and not just in hair color, but… try to put up with it, okay?" Nam then staggered in fear when Lance kicked a barrel next to them to the floor in anger and started walking around in frustration. Nam turned to the Andromeda Saint. "Shinta, I hope you don't mind all of this."

Shinta looked over to where Lance was fuming around and telling people who bothered him to take a hike. He smiled. "Don't worry, Saint Nam, I don't mind. I'm sure we'll be great friends." Saint Nam seemed really skeptical of this, but kept silent before leaving the area. Shinta went over to Lance and tried to calm him down. "Lance, I'm sorry for this situation. I know you really wanted your solo missions back."

Lance sighed and rubbed his eyes. "This is the biggest pile of BULLSHIT I've ever seen…what the fuck was that hag is thinking?!" he complained to himself. "Alright, then, so fucking be it! If I have to put up with you, I don't want to hear any complaints or crying or shouting for my help or any sort of bitching whatsoever. You're either manning up with me or I'll ditch you in North Korea or some shit or just tell Sanctuary you took the wrong turn in Portugal. Don't count on them sending a rescue mission for you in that hellhole!"

Shinta nodded nervously, not sure if Lance was just trying to scare him. He had heard many terrible things about that one Iberian country next to Spain. "O-okay, Lance, I'll do my best." He promised. "But, I was really hoping we could get along. I know I can be… sort of a crybaby…but I really want to prove to you that I can keep up with you and be useful and hopefully, one day, you won't see me as a nuisance."

Lance scoffed. "Oh yeah, and see you as what then?"

Shinta smiled warmly. "As a friend?"

The Pegasus Saint stared at him for several seconds. He suddenly lost the anger in his look and seemed pensive. "I…FUCK OFF!" Lance then turned his back to him. Lance sighed yet again. He seemed to stare at the Cloth Box that Shinta was carrying. "Shinta…"

"Yes, Lance, what is it?"

Lance turned to him, but seemed to be having trouble spitting it out. "So…Cloths are alive, huh?" he asked once more. "Do you mind explain to me what the hell that is about?"

Shinta blinked, surprised that such a subject would be suddenly brought up. Now that he thought of it, he didn't have a chance to properly explain it to Lance, who really seemed to be lacking in education.

Seeing it a chance to at last befriend Lance, Shinta smiled warmly and decided to explain.

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**Present time, 1977, Pope's Halls**

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"After being teamed up with Andromeda" said Shion "Lance demonstrated a gradual change in attitude. Though he hasn't shown signs of valuing the Sanctuary's call or respecting his superiors, he was far less violent in his missions and the number of urban incidents around him decreased, though not entirely gone. The most obvious sign of change in him is his relationship with the boy, Shinta. Initially almost despising the boy, Lance now has befriended the Andromeda Saint, who became one of the few people he cares about."

"So your plan worked, Your Holiness." concluded Saga.

Shion felt a bit guilty. "Well, Saga... to call it a plan is wrong for I had little confidence in it. It was more of a desperate, last-resort measure or, better yet, a leap of faith."

"Master, what would you have done if it hadn't worked, then?" asked Mu.

"Firstly, I would get Shinta as far away from Lance as possible as soon as possible."

"And what then, your Holiness? What would you have done with Lance?" asked Aquarius Malta. Shion answered only with silence. "I see... Good thing it worked, then."

Shion slowly nodded, as if he was also picturing some terrible outcome. "Yes...Because I doubt that, if things had taken another turn, we would still be having this discussion in the first place."

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Bond Forged by Fire

**Release Date:** 27th July 2014

**Description**: While Lance and Shinta are working on a mission, a sudden Specter attack occurs nearby and the two Saints are forced to interfere when the carnage takes terrifying levels


	6. 1A: Bonds Forged By Fire Part 1 of 3

**Notable OCs up until now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation;

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town;

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests;

**Author notes**:

-**Drachmas:** to those wondering what this is, this was the Greek currency before the European Union enforced the Euro in 1999. Since the story takes place in the 1970s, it is mandatory then that the currency used in Sanctuary in my story is the Drachma, which is worth nowadays approximately a third of an European cent.

Please enjoy and review.

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**Golden Zodiac's Stairs Present Time**

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Shinta patiently marched along the stairs between the Houses of Scorpio and Sagittarius, following Lance and surrounded by the entourage of mean looking Papal Guards. It seemed as if it was taking hours to cross just one set of stairs and he could swear the cavernous tick-tack of the Fire Clock the overlooked the Twelve Temples was getting louder and more ominous with each step they took. They were, after all, being taken to the Pope's Temple to be punished.

His green eyes looked up to Lance in search of some signal of reassurance, like a wink or a smile, but Lance seemed to just ignore him. Pegasus seemed to be observing everything around him, particularly the Temples and the passing soldiers and servants, like a wild animal being taken into captivity and carefully looking for a chance to escape. He didn't seem to mind the tremendous walk across a seemingly endless mat of stair steps they were being subject to. Shinta drew strength from his example and smiled. He had always been able to find a little more energy to try harder inside himself just by looking up to the Pegasus Saint.

After hours of silence, one of the guards seemed to suddenly whisper something to Lance. "I know who you are, Pegasus. I know the blood you got on your hands."

Lance glanced at him for just a moment before turning back to whatever he was finding so fascinating about the Twelve Temples' layout. "...Which friend or family member of yours provoked me and got sent to the hospital?" he asked.

At first glance, the Papal Guard didn't budge a bit, but Shinta saw how they then seemed to frown almost imperceptibly. It was hard to tell from their helmets, which shadowed most of their face. Shinta imagined that the only thing stopping the man from lashing out at Lance was the intense discipline he was taught to adhere to. "You broke my brother's arm in three places. He died on his next mission because he couldn't hold his shield right against a murderer with a spear." he commented. The corner of Lance's eyes saw the guard's grip on his weapon tightening in anger. "I know you're a murderer who deserves to rot in jail!"

Shinta widened his eyes. Lance, on the other hand, didn't seem the least bothered. "Your brother was a violent asshole too stupid to stay in the hospital until he recovered. He got what he deserved."

Andromeda gasped. "_LANCE!_"

Lance ignored Shinta's indignity and kept addressing the guard. "If you want to pick a fight with me, that's fine, but do it outside the Golden Zodiac after this is all over. I'm not going to give you just cause to arrest me by giving you the same treatment your brother got for crossing with me. Remember, you Papal Guards may have the authority to take me in, but until this 'breaking in' matter is settled, you can't lay a finger on me!"

The Papal Guard gritted teeth in anger, but turned back to his task of escorting them up the stairs. Shinta stared at the indifferent Lance in revolt. Sometimes, he wasn't sure who really started the fights whenever Lance got into one. Even if the guard was giving signs of wanting to throw the first punch, the Pegasus Saint's words were clearly exacerbating. Still, Lance just kept on analyzing his surroundings as if nothing had happened.

The Andromeda Saint started feeling curious about what Lance was so interested in. Now that he thought of it, it was the first time either of them ever set foot so deep in the Golden Zodiac. "_These Temples sure are enormous, aren't they?_" he asked via 6th sense. "_I've never seen anything so majestic up close._"

The Pegasus Saint nodded. "_Yeah, they look more like palaces than places of worship, except for the 6th one. I bet the Gold Saints live like Kings here._"

The Andromeda Saint awed at the sight of the enormous pillars. If they weren't in such a serious situation, he'd probably spend more time enjoying the scenery. He had read much about the Golden Zodiac and seen its buildings from afar countless times.

Shinta started imagining what would it be like living in the Temple of Virgo, the one that was his constellation. When they passed through it, it seemed like a very spiritual place with statues of Buddha, theology bookshelves and an aroma of incense in every room, even though only servants and seers lived there, with no Virgo Saint currently active. "_Hey, Lance, did you get to see a seer when you got to Sanctuary to check your constellation? I had one and she said I had to go to Andromeda Island because I was born under the princess' constellation._"

For some reason, Lance didn't answer right away. Over time, Shinta had noticed Pegasus did this whenever he wouldn't tell the whole story. "_Yeah, but she only asked me a couple of questions and did some weird test on me. After that, they just told me I had to go to Mount Olympus._" Lance still remembered that day clearly.

"_Huh? That's kind of strange... Didn't they tell you if you were compatible with Pegasus or anything?_"

Lance shook his head. "_Not really, but you don't have to be compatible with a constellation to follow its Path. Most people are born without any constellation watching over them._"

Shinta blinked and stared at his friend in suspicion. Lance wasn't told anything about his own stellar inclination as a Saint of Athena? Master Guardnia had told him that the experience with the seer and being told of one's destiny or lack of it was one of the marking moments of one's life as a Saint. It wasn't something to be phased over so lightly. Then again, Lance told him he was considered a problematic student with little hope for success. Even though it was extremely unfair, Shinta imagined it wasn't an impossible situation for a couple of steps having been skipped.

His eyes started looking around. He noticed how he hadn't heard the sound of chirping in the air for a while and realized that there was a really creepy lack of birds near the Temples. He could spot several flocks of them flying at the distance, but it was like they avoided the huge mountain they were on. The rocky terrain of the mountain's side also seemed to be lacking any sort of vegetation, like bushes or small trees. For a place radiating with light from Athena's Temples, the Golden Zodiac really looked barren and devoid of life.

On closer inspection, as he looked over his shoulder, though, he could spot a big garden at the Virgo House's patio and at the Taurus House's open roof. Still, the birds avoided these places like the plague, even thought the Second House's garden seemed to have several fruit trees which should attract the animals. He wondered if all of this had anything to do with Athena's protective blessings.

Shinta turned to one of the guards. "Why doesn't anything grow in the mountain?" he asked. "Even the mountains around Sanctuary have some grass and animals."

The Papal Guard Captain eyed him for a moment like he had asked something stupid. "Didn't you study Sanctuary's history? It's been like this since the Third Civil War twelve years ago." he answered. Lance's interest seemed to be picked by this. "Before that, yes, small things grew on this mountain, but... the Pope ordered the whole mountain side to be 'cleansed' and reinforced Athena's Blessings with some weird spell after an infiltration incident. Ever since then, the birds stopped landing around here and the seeds carried by the wind stopped taking root on the ground."

Lance scowled. "_Long story short, nothing grows on the mountain because the Pope's paranoid._" he joked to Shinta. Paranoia, in his opinion, fitted the blasted old man to a tee with all the people he had sent to follow a mere Bronze Saint over the years.

"_Are you worried, Lance?_" asked Shinta, via mental message. "_You've been mostly quiet the whole time. I mean, I know you're usually quiet, but..._"

Lance, to his surprise, nodded. "_Yes, of course I'm worried. They're discussing my future up there and Sanctuary isn't exactly known for its 'modern' punishing methods._" he commented, sarcastically. "_The discussion is probably just a formality. Hell, they must be sharpening the guillotine as we speak._"

Shinta gasped. "_Lance, don't say that! That's a horrible thing to be thinking about. They won't...they 'can't' kill you just because you failed the Heracles Saint's test._" he protested. "_Remember, above all, you're a good person. I know you are. You... You've been my best friend for a year and a half. I don't want you to say something awful like that like your life is worthless!_"

The Pegasus Saint sighed. "_You seriously need to stop putting me on a pedestal. I'm not infallible, Shinta. I've done plenty of wrong stuff way worse than breaking some dick's arm in three spots. Sanctuary murders trainees for failing blot tests." _he exaggerated. _"They won't have any qualms in punishing me._"

Shinta narrowed his eyes in frustration. "_Lance, you learned Japanese because you were my friend._" he reminded him.

"_It's not that hard once you figure out how to order the words in the sentences._"

"_You saved my life a whole bunch of times._"

"_Comrades save each others' lives all the time. You've done the same for me, too, remember?_"

The Andromeda Saint growled in frustration. He wished he knew just what exactly was at the bottom of Lance's self-hate. It was also strange how comfortable he was with it, as if he accepted whatever crime he thought himself guilty of.

"You've saved other peoples' lives, too. Lance, you remember Alexis, don't you?" he said out loud. It got the guards' attention, but he didn't care. "You remember how you saved her life?"

Lance's red eyes widened for just a second. He hadn't thought about that in a while."...Yeah, I do."

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**A year before, early September of 1974, Sanctuary Town**

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It was still very early in the morning, but the sunrise already shined brightly over the city overlooked by the Golden Zodiac. The Greek Summer was almost over, but the days were still long and very hot. Shinta practically glued his face against the store keeper's stand and tried to decide what to get. "Hum... I want...I think I'll take the orange sodas and..." Shinta started getting nervous with the shopkeeper's impatient glare. Usually, the nice lady he fathered would tend the store, but the aged, bald man of whitened mustache seemed to have taken her shift to guard the business with his stern look. Shinta didn't want to take another bag of corn to pop with cosmos for his next mission because he was getting so sick of it, but the pressure of the man's glare weighed on him. "Do you have chips?"

The man's hand reached for a pack of Ruffles from the stand and gave it to the green-haired boy. It was a welcome alternative in short missions to the small sacks of corn Saints usually took. In long missions where going back for food was not an alternative, Saints would usually take a single corn, which was small, easy to store and durable, and 'pop' it by burning it with a bit of cosmos. It was a popular choice due to its convenience and nutrition, but also a bit hated due to it being one of the few good choices there were.

"That would be seventeen hundred Drachmas (_five euros_)." the man said.

Shinta gasped with the price. A couple of sodas and a bag of chips were that expensive? He started looking over his wallet. He could afford it, but he had no idea it could get so pricey.

The shopkeeper's daughter, a pretty young woman with long brown hair, passed by all of a sudden. She looked at the money Shinta was handing over. "Dad! What are you doing?!" she shouted. She took Shinta's hand and placed on it the real change. "Here, I'm sorry. It's only eight hundred." Shinta blinked. Was there some sort of mix-up? Her dad groaned something in complaint and walked away. The young woman rolled her eyes. "I'm really sorry. My father is... old-fashioned. _He doesn't like Asians and was trying to charge you double,_" she whispered.

"Oh... I'm sorry if I angered him." Shinta apologized. He knew he didn't do anything wrong, but it was still a situation he would have preferred to be avoided.

Her heart melted a bit with the sad look in his eyes. "Oh, don't worry, sweetie. You didn't do anything wrong. If you want to buy anything here just talk to me, okay? I'll give you a fair price." she assured. She then recognized him. "You're that Andromeda Saint, right?" Shinta nodded. "I heard the Andromeda Cloth was the second hardest Bronze Cloth to get. I'm impressed."

"I had a great Master." Shinta promptly answered, having no doubts that this was the true reason for his success. "When I got to Sanctuary, I thought I would never survive here, but Master Guardnia showed me I was wrong and that I could make my cosmos burn and accomplish miracles. I owe a lot to him. He's like a Father to me."

She seemed to recognize the same, as she rubbed her chin, humming to herself. "Guardnia, huh? Yes, I think I've heard of him. Poor man." she commented, recalling the last ten years. "Not only was your Grand-Master involved on the wrong side of the Civil War, but I believe your teacher has had to see a lot of trainees lose their lives on his island. He must be really proud of you, specially since you got the best Cloth on his Training Ground." she commented. Shinta's smile beamed up. "Don't you work with Saint Pegasus?"

Shinta brightened up. "Yes, that's right! Do you know him, too?"

The young woman's semblance got serious. "You should stay away from him. Don't you know what kind of person he is? That guy is dangerous." she warned.

"Dangerous? No, Lance is nothing like that... well, not to someone who's nice to him." Shinta protested. "He's a really good person once you get to know him. Besides, he's my teammate. We trust each other."

She sighed and petted the young teen's innocent head. "All bad boys have _good hearts_, but they'll still break yours in the end, you know?" she joked. She could tell from Shinta's embarrassed frown that he didn't like it but since the Saint looked so much like a girl, she couldn't resist. "Look, just heed my advice and keep away from that r-" She then hesitated in her wording. There was never any proof that what happened to that girl from the Pacific was Pegasus' fault, even though it just felt like one of those things were everyone knew who was responsible but no one could prove it. "-that _punk_. Stay away from that punk before he drags you into something you'll regret."

Shinta narrowed his eyes. He really appreciated her concern, but it was starting to sound like she didn't think he knew what was best for himself. He hid his frustration, bagged his things, thanked her for everything and headed off to the MMC, where his teammate would be awaiting.

The Andromeda Saint wondered if he should have gotten something healthier than a bag of chips for a mission meal. His Master had always enforced on him the importance of a good diet. He even tried to get Shinta to switch his soda addiction to a juice one. The problem was that the Saint's usual diet was always very focused on the same nutritional, tasteless meals so it was very easy to get sick of it.

Shinta arrived to the Mission Management Center. It was a bureaucratic building on First Street which directed and recorded the assignments given to Saints. Most of Sanctuary's work in helping the world stand on its feet despite natural disasters and bad people with cosmos was done through there. It towered over the adjacent houses thanks to it's triple flooring but mostly followed the same architectural style of white walls and orange tile roofs.

As soon as he entered he was engulfed by the faint murmuring of Saints, soldiers and bureaucrats giving and being given orders that characterized the interior. There were several desks lined up against the wall with signs that indicated their purpose. It almost felt like the inside of a bank. Everyone was either in a line or being attended by a clerk or secretary.

Shinta found Lance standing in front of the white boards were missions were scheduled. He rushed to his teammate's side. "Lance, I got the food. Has anyone given you a mission yet?"

Lance shook his head without taking his eyes off the whiteboard. "There's a couple of jobs, but they're mostly easy. They only redirect them straight to me when they have a tough, Silver-Class ones." Shinta nodded in understanding. "Lance, how come a Gold Class mission never shows up on the board? I mean, I wouldn't really want to take a scary assignment like that, but..."

"I've been told that Gold Saint get their assignments handed directly by the Pope." Lance explained. "It could be for a whole bunch of reasons; to protect their identity, for convenience or just for the sake of not sending lions to crush ants." Lance then suddenly narrowed his eyes. "But let me tell you one thing; it wouldn't hurt the Pope to send them to give us a hand every now and then. God knows I've needed it..." he hissed thinking back to Death Queen Island. Shinta imagined Lance must have really suffered once at the hands of this policy.

Shinta smiled nervously and tried to change the subject. "...I see...S-so, how do you think they gauge the assignments? Do they send scouts or something?"

Lance shrugged his shoulders. "They wouldn't really have to. As soon as they sense signs of trouble, they only really have to try to determine what kind of power level they detect in the area. There's also Sanctuary's information network composed by its Undercover Saints and agents." A man then came along and started scribbling something on the board with a black marker. While most of the other posted missions had details regarding the Class, the location and so on, this one only seemed to have the acronym DQI written on it.

Shinta watched Pegasus immediately rush forward and write his full title and name in front of it. He then marked it at the end with an asterisk, which was an indicator of special circumstances. "What is it, Lance? Are we going there next? Do you want me to sign up, too?"

Lance, to his surprise, shook his head. "I'm going alone on that one later." He saw Shinta widen his eyes and open his mouth to inquire him, but Pegasus explained himself right away. "I know the Pope is forcing us to be a team, but this one is different, trust me. Even if I didn't put my name on it now, they'd just ask me about it later. We'll find something else to work on."

"...Hmm, okay, if you say so..." Shinta looked back at the board.

Lance looked over a small notepad he had been writing possibilities on. "I've been thinking of Ismara. It's a Sanctuary outpost town placed between the Danube river and the German border with Czechoslovakia. It watches over Sanctuary villages in the area, covering everything between the Austrian Alps and the Soviet Union. They've been asking Sanctuary to send a reinforcement team to deal with local Skeleton Soldier patrols. I figured it would be a welcome break from all the damn Black Saint missions."

Shinta looked for this in the board in search of more details. For some reason, Hades' foot soldiers were not a strange sight in southern Germany. Master Guardnia had told him that Hades' Earthly Castle would usually pop up in that region, so maybe this had something to do with it. He spotted an ongoing mission next to it where a familiar name was signed in.

He beamed up in excitement. "Hey, look, Saint Cynthia is in East Berlin! That's just beyond Ismara's region, right?" he cried out. Lance blinked. "She was an Amazon Cassiopeia Saint who worked together with my Master in Andromeda Island. She's a really nice person and a great cook...Well, except in my 'Labyrinth of the Queen' test where she was acting kind of violent...She even told Mufasa, the island's pet lion, to attack me at the end of it!" he recalled.

Lance raised a brow. "I'm sorry, she did _what_?"

Shinta, however, just kept talking about the Amazon. "Saint Cynthia used to prepare some of the challenges I had to go through and sometimes she looked after us and trained us when Master wasn't around. Maybe we could meet up with her." he suggested, anxious to introduce Lance to one of the dearest people he knew.

Lance grunted. He'd really rather not follow Shinta around and take a detour to Germany just so he could recall precious memories with an old trainer of his, especially someone who sounded like she had some really crazy mood swings.

"I wonder what she's doing there..." Shinta murmured. "She's always working in tense areas where there's violence or injustice. She must be helping people there, too."

The Pegasus Saint rolled his eyes. Maybe Shinta _was_ too young to know anything concrete about modern political conflict and the Cold War, but he wished his forced partner wouldn't be so oblivious about those situations. "Well, she's not guarding walls, I'll tell you that."

"Huh? Why would you say that, Lance?"

"...Never mind." The two Saints then signed themselves up in the Ismara's mission and left the MMC.

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**Rodario**

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Having left Sanctuary Town, the two Bronze Saints entered Rodario so as to leave Sanctuary via land. Although they could easily use sound speed, Bronze and Silver Saints were required by law to use normal velocity in the village because, while it was isolated, the surrounding region was one of the spots in Sanctuary's wing most exposed to normal societies. The objective was for the tourists, hikers and scouts that passed by the region would not be caught off guard by the sight of things moving around at the speed of sound in the apparently normal, though isolated, village.

The streets of Rodario weren't much different from that of Sanctuary Town in terms of architecture asides from the more antiquated layout and rural aspect. Stone houses were a common sight as well as straw roofs in the peripherals spots of the village and a lot of the roads were narrow or of dirt. There was also a clear difference of population density. Every street in Sanctuary town was filled with people and soldiers moving around. Rodario, in contrast, only had a couple of villagers or guards in every street.

By far, the most impressive sight was that of the original Sanctuary Coliseum, which could be seen from any point in the village thanks to the low number of mulch-storied houses. It was the main reason why Rodario was still seen as a major culture spot of Sanctuary, even though a ruin-less replica had been recently constructed in Sanctuary Town, where Lance had fought Kastiel.

The two Saints reached the main street of the village, which consisted of a crossroad centered by a rather large and impressive looking stone fountain. Shinta awed at the sight of it. Amidst the rural homes and quaint streets, it was a stunning and rather elaborate sight. Its large pond surrounded what appeared to be a stone replica of the Gemini Cloth's rest form, it's four arms holding a large plate above its two-faced head on top of which a group of Gold Saints seemed to be forming a protective phalanx around Athena while stepping on corpses of heterogeneously armored fallen enemies. Athena held her Nike staff high in the air and rested her shield on the plate while the tip of the Gold Saints' spears gushed out water into the lower pond.

They stopped to admire it for a second. It was a triumphant sight of majesty and victory that completely stood out in the neighborhood. It had countless aging marks such as cracks, old vines and wear scratches but this all seemed redundant compared to the beauty of the greater picture.

A large group of camera totting tourists then seemed to waltz in, led by a young, blue-haired child which didn't seem to be older than five or six years old. "And if you step right here, you'll see the Great War Fountain, a landmark of Rodario." he recited in English. "As you can see, it is also devoted to the Goddess Athena, who was still worshiped around these parts even after Christianity spread throughout Europe."

Many camera flashes captured the fountain's picture. One tourist raised his hand. "Tour Guide Milo, what Great War are you speaking of? If people built this to worship Athena, then it is not about the World War, right?" he asked, also in English and with a clearly North American accent.

The boy, Milo, shook his head. "Oh, no, it is not. This fountain was built to commemorate the end of a terrible, terrible War fought, like, a thousand years ago, so as you can see, it is almost as old as my grandpa!" The tourist crowd chuckled with the child's joke. They then headed off. The extremely young tour guide waved at the ruined Coliseum in the distance. "Over there we have the Coliseum of Rodario, which was built by Romans a _really_ long time ago so that they could watch us kill each other for their amusement." he lied. "We'll be visiting it next."

Lance's red eyes stared at the group for a while, shocked that they were led by such a young brat. He walked over to the fountain and read the inscription in Greek outloud to Shinta.

"_By the light of Athena and Pope Alexander we emerge victorious. We shall never forget the hatred and violence of this age and the comrades we have lost along this terrible road. Let us leave behind the darkness and walk towards the future with purity in our hearts._

_-The Greatest Generation_'."

Shinta stared at the stone faces of the Gold Saints. They were featureless, sporting only a carved frown in the stone and a nose, but no eyes. The artist had managed to capture something awful in said frowns, as they looked terribly pained to the Andromeda Saint, as if these warriors had gone through a nightmare. "What is this fountain really about, Lance?"

"Well, the tour guide actually told the tourists the truth. This is about the 11th Century Wars." explained Lance. He then noticed something important."Well, Gemini is technically depicted here, but why isn't he up there with the others?...Well, there is no good talking about it right now, so let's just go. You have everything ready, right?"

Shinta nodded. He put down the Cloth box and opened its lid to place the food inside. As soon as the pink of the Andromeda Cloth was hit by the light of day, though, a spear-tipped chain came lashing out like a vicious snake in Pegasus' direction. Lance, however, used to Shinta's Cloth's behavior, easily caught the links and stunned the metallic tentacle by squeezing on it with his burning white cosmos.

Shinta detected a sharp yelp from Andromeda who then retracted her chain inside like a punished dog. "O-oh, sorry, Lance. I don't think she's ever going to get used to you. The Princess can be really stubborn about it when she doesn't like someone. She loves Master Guardnia and Saint Cynthia, though." He stored his things inside and closed the lid carefully while whispering a kind word to his Cloth, requesting her to behave. "I guess it's a good thing that, at least, she gets along with Pegasus, right?"

Lance only scoffed something and headed off with Shinta following in tow. Not since they got back from their first mission had Shinta seen Lance say anything to Pegasus or talk about the fact that he had just found out it could speak and have a personality of its own. It was almost like Lance was angry at it or something.

The Andromeda Cloth whimpered inside its Cloth in pain. If only Lance didn't have a Silver Saint's cosmos, she would be able to teach him a lesson. "_I don't understand how you can trust him! You should only trust me. I don't hide anything from you._"

"_Lance doesn't hide that much from me, Princess. Even in our first mission he didn't have bad intentions when he kept his plot to take down the Black Saints to himself._" Shinta defended. "_Besides, you keep attacking people you don't like despite me telling you not to. I can't really trust you like that, either, can I?_"

"_Oh, really?_" her sly _voice_ asked. "_Well, that refusal of him to let you participate in that 'special' mission of his sure seemed suspicious. He was in such a rush to sign himself up, too... I wonder what exact circumstances let him ignore the Pope's command to have the two of you go together everywhere...Oh, Shinta, get a brain!_" she berated. "_He keeps manipulating you and you don't even realize it. If only you'd listen to me... but, alas, I must let you learn your lesson by yourself, you...naive stupid-head._" Andromeda then fell completely silent.

Shinta ignored her warning. For some time, he had started to realize that Andromeda seemed to try to manipulate him a lot more than Pegasus did, and in a bad way, too. Thinking of Saint Cynthia and her Silver Cloth, Cassiopeia, Andromeda's mother, Shinta recalled how his Master had once told him that the Amazon sometimes did certain things without wanting or even realizing it because she was being influenced by her Silver Cloth. Was Andromeda trying to do the same?

Lance didn't seem to have that problem. The few times Shinta and the Pegasus Cloth conversed were short and gave Shinta the idea that the winged horse was rather shy and wavering, an attitude so different from Lance's, which certainly didn't fit the profile of manipulator Shinta had learned to recognize.

As they passed through the streets, Lance saw eyes turning towards the two of them either in surprise, fear, or anger. They were either recognizing the infamous Saint or were just shocked at the contrast the pair of Saints presented to them. Shinta 's head only reached his shoulders, short as he was, and the remaining physical differences only made their proximity more staggering.

Eventually, they passed by a small group of Bronze Saints. Shinta felt himself quiver as their glares met Lance's. For a second, it seemed as if the vicious sparks between them would start a fight by themselves, but Lance ignored them and marched off. Pegasus was so unpopular even his fellow Saints seemed to hate him. They didn't seem to enjoy the sight of Shinta, either. Shinta remembered the shopkeeper's father. "Lance, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"Well, when I was buying supplies, I was saved from being tricked by the clerk by his daughter. She apologized and said it was because her dad didn't like Asians. There's a lot of people who's nice and smile and even wave at me, specially girls, but there's also a lot of people who don't seem to like me. Why is that?"

"Well, you're fucking annoying, just to start!" Lance growled. "You're short, you look like a girl, every guy's girlfriends seem to like you more than them and to top it all off, your voice is apparently immune to puberty." Shinta widened his eyes, not sure to be hurt or amazed by the merciless onslaught of insults. "Asians are viewed as weaker than Europeans here. We think that the only thing you guys have going for you is sheer numbers. Besides... Sanctuary has always been mostly white guys, preferably from the Southern Balkans and Italy. Do you remember seeing a black guy _anywhere_ in Sanctuary outside the African bases?" Shinta gasped as he realized he truly hadn't. Lance continued. "We don't even want our own women in the army, so much that we forced them to wear masks, so why should we want _former slaves and slit eyes_ here?"

"Well, you're European, aren't you?" Shinta asked. "You don't mind that I'm here, right?"

Lance glanced at him for a second. "What? No, of course not, Shinta. Do you really think I care about any of that? I got enough to worry about." he said. "I can't stand putting up with this forced partnership for a whole other set of reasons, trust me."

Shinta's eyes saddened. He knew there was racism in Sanctuary for a long while. Kids in Andromeda Island would often pick on him for being Japanese and Master Guardnia had given him the 'It's Okay To Be Different Talk' a long time ago. He just never thought that in Sanctuary Town, among adults, it could still be so bad or even worse. "That doesn't make any sense. Doesn't Athena preach love, peace and equality?"

"Athena preaches what's fucking convenient to her!" Lance suddenly snapped. "Relying on Athena for anything here is a sure ticket to disappointment and death, Shinta. A pacifist such as you should not like someone who shows up around here every two centuries to wage war and then bolts as soon as the time to repair Sanctuary comes. And when you're dying in battle or desperate for aid, she's not gonna pull your hand from the abyss. It will be your own strength and that of your teammates!" Lance then decided to shut up before it turned into a full on rant on the deity in the middle of her holy grounds, but he still seem to mumble something to himself. "She's a Goddess of War! How can she preach fucking peace?"

Shinta felt surprised at Lance's sudden outburst. While it did fit in his head that a guy like Lance, who was so independent and such a lone wolf, wouldn't think of relying on Athena for anything either, it was news to him that Lance dislike her at the point of having such a reaction to Shinta's inquiry. "Well, you must believe in her somewhat, right? You've become a Saint, after all."

Lance sighed. "Shinta, you can't really be an atheist if you _know_ God exists!" They then finally reached the gates of Rodario, where they would be able to depart safely at super speed. "Now let's go. The guys at Ismara probably have a ton of work for us to do for them."

The Andromeda Saint nodded and quietly followed Lance throughout the Greek countryside. Hopefully the mission would be uneventful, specially if they are going to what was considered a border region with Hades' territory.

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**Chapter 6**

**First Arc**

**Episode 5**

**Bonds Forged by Fire**

**Part 1 of 2**

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**Meanwhile, in Arcadia, a Sanctuary village near the Ismara outpost...**

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Her alarm clock started ringing loudly, awakening her. She instantly smashed the top of it with her hand to shut it up and turned her lamp on. It was seven in the morning already? She shook her drowsiness off and got out of bed.

She looked at the mirror. Her jaw-length red hair, her most defining characteristic in the mostly brunette village, was all over the place and her brown eyes seemed to struggle a bit to stay open. After tidying herself up and getting dressed, she headed out her room to prepare breakfast.

When she got to the kitchen, her Mom seemed to be already awake drinking a cup of coffee. Her tired, old eyes turned to her daughter and she sighed. "Alexis, what are you doing? It's Saturday morning! There's no school today. Go back to bed." She then hid the bills they got for that month in a nearby drawer.

The red-haired, twelve years old girl shook her head and started preparing her cereal. "It's okay, I'm not sleepy." she lied. "There's a lot to do in the house. You're the one who should still be in bed, Mom. This morning cold is not good for your health. Seriously, old lady, you could get pneumonia or something." she joked. "I'll take care of things. Go lie down, okay?"

"I'm fifty, not decrepit!" the farmer woman hissed, though she hid the slight smile that hit her lips.

Alexis smirked without taking her eyes off the milk she was heating. Their old oven was getting so rusty. Pieces of electronic and technology were only partially tolerated in Sanctuary's dependencies and outright barred from Training Grounds, from what she had heard. She often wondered how the poor trainees ever got a decent breakfast in all those islands and remote places of the world the Cloths were stored at.

Her mom watched her getting her study books ready on the table while preparing her breakfast. Not a single time had she ever had to tell Alexis to go study or clean her room. In fact, sometimes she felt like the young girl took more care of her parents than the other way around. "Someone your age shouldn't be getting up so early to do chores and work hard in her studies. Athena knows that when I was your age I wish I'd done that, but..."

"...but I should go have some fun, right? Yeah, yeah, I heard that one like a thousand times!" the preteen complained. "Where's Dad? Is the old man still sleeping or what?"

"I'm here!" someone shouted. A bald man named Fergus with whitened mustache and mining clothes, complete with hardhat and an old set of goggles, came rushing out of her parent's room with several tools including a shovel and pickaxe under his arm. "I'm just going to the iron mine for a while. It's my day off, but they need my help over there." he kissed his wife and daughter's cheeks and went straight for the door.

Just as he was about to leave, the miner winced in pain and touched his thigh. Alexis sighed and shook her head. "Dad, wait! You can't carry everything all the way there." she reminded him. She turned off the oven flame and took some of the heavy tools from him. "I'll go there with you and head straight back."

Fergus sighed. "Thank you, 'Lexis, but your dad is fine. He can still carry the weight of the family-"

Alexis shook her head and smiled reassuringly. "The doctor told you not to carry so much heavy stuff all the time." she complained. "This is so stupid! The mining company has enough money to buy big drills to replace you guys, but not enough for a proper tool shed? It's like they want you to break your hips by carrying these things back and forth from your home."

The old man's eyes saddened for a moment. "I'm a miner. I have to strain my bones somehow by the end of the day."

"Mom, I'm heading off with Dad, but I'll be right back." she shouted, purposely ignoring her dad. She grabbed her Dad's arm with her free hand and dragged him out of the house to the street. "Come on, Mr. Fergus. You're not to manly to let your daughter help you, right?"

Her father opened his mouth to protest, but decided not to insist. The stubborn girl cared about her parents way too much to listen. His old eyes started looking around and saw kids her age either playing soccer or being with their friends. Not one was studying or doing extra chores or even putting up with their parents. "Alexis, don't you want to go play with your friends?"

She hook her head. "No, that's okay."

"Don't you want to go play soccer with the boys? You always loved that."

Alexis smirked. "Dad, I got plenty of time to that later."

"Here, I feel better, let me take the tools-"

"Dad, I'm fine! Don't worry about it. It's not that heavy. If I feel tired I can always burn cosmos, right?" she reminded him. "I may not be able to punch a rock to smithereens but I can lift my own weight, okay?"

Fergus nodded. It was not uncommon in villages under Sanctuary's protection and tuition for children to awaken cosmos. After all, they were introduced to subject since birth and were always in contact with foot soldiers and Saints, who made a career out of using it and teaching it to others.

Alexis had awakened her cosmos at a fairly early age and, fortunately for her parents, unlike many other careless or playful children who did the same, had enough sense not to abuse it. He still remembered Alexis coming home, years ago, crying and shouting she had almost killed her classmate.

"_M-Mom, D-dad, what's happening to me? I was just playing soccer a-and.. and my hands were burning and I...I think I hurt my friend!"_

"_It's okay, Alexis. This...This is normal."_

"_W-we were just p-playing and I twisted his arm around! H-he... T-they said he was r-really hurt and had to go to the h-hospital I...I didn't want to do that! I didn't want to hurt hi-him."_

"_It's alright, sweetie. Calm down...We believe you..."_

Fergus turned to his daughter and saw her diligently carrying her share of weight without a single complaint. She even offered him a smile of encouragement. Maybe she wasn't very sociable, but Fergus still thanked Athena for giving them such a kind and hard-working daughter to love.

It was a twenty minutes walk past the wooden palisade that surrounded their village to get to the iron mines. It consisted of a massive hole on a cliff-side sitting on harsh, rocky terrain. The industry was fenced all around and usually had many vehicles carrying loads of metal and gas canisters back and forth. A massive building sat next to the mine where carts of iron were railed into for refining and filtering of the ore. Several magnetic machines were used inside the mine to find and retrieve the metal, but workers were still required to open way inside the mountain with pickaxes, shovels, explosives and the occasional mechanized drills.

The iron was usually taken to Tibet, for Lemurian craftsmen, and to Greece so that Sanctuary could build standard equipment for the foot soldiers. This time, however, the entire infrastructure seemed to be closed and several workers were locked outside together with a man who seemed to be explaining the situation. "Huh? What's going on at the mine, Dad?"

Fergus shrugged his shoulders and tried to get closer. They eventually were able to hear the man's voice despite the grumbling of the many miners. "It is not safe to operate the facility. Sanctuary's authorities are hence closing the mine until further notice. Please return to your homes and answer to the local guards. This is not a drill!"

The mine's owner, surrounded by his engineers, raised his fist. "Are you kidding me?! Do you have any idea of the quotas I have to fill for my clients? This is MY factory and I want it open, right now! Sanctuary has no business in closing my enterprise!"

"So long as its in Sanctuary's land and protection, the Pope has full powers over your mine. Please disperse or I'll be forced to call the guards!" warned the man.

Fergus turned to one of his worker friends. "What is going on?"

"They've received word from Ismara yesterday that a group of Skeleton Soldiers is roaming about." the friend explained.

"It's always the same thing. They see trees rustling in the distance and they tell us not to go to work for safety reasons." commented another. "I bet it's nothing. They'll do anything to make their base look useful to Sanctuary just so they don't risk having their men sent to 'Elba'."

The red-haired girl blinked. "_Elba? What's that?_" she thought. Alexis turned to her dad. "Well, I guess you're not going to work today, huh?" Her brown eyes saw her father hide a sigh of frustration. "You could at least smile a bit about it. You'll be able to spend the day with your lovely family and you won't get to break your back with all these big machines and tools, right?"

Fergus chuckled against his will. "I was... actually hoping to get a few extra hours. We could use the money." Fergus then turned away and frowned.

Father and daughter started heading back to the village. Alexis frowned sadly at the sight of her old father. He had spent his life working in the mine so he could feed his wife and herself. It didn't help that they had her at such a late stage, when they were already past their working prime. She saw her dad hunching forward with the weight of his pickaxe and shovel. She didn't like to think about the strain he would put up with inside that mine everyday.

She wrapped her free arm around her father's so as to help him march forward. "Don't worry, dad. I know we're a bit tight on money, but we can still pay the taxes to the Pope and put food on the table. For now, that's enough, isn't it?"

Her father concurred with a somber head nod. "For someone so young to be saying such a thing... I didn't think my middle-school daughter would be so much better at being an adult than I am." he joked.

After entering the village, the two of them walked past once more through the streets filled with playing children and farmyard animals pulling carts of vegetables and wheat. Alexis took a look at the wooden palisades that protected her hometown. Though sharpened into a point at the top, the logs used to build the wall were a laughable obstacle to a roaming Skeleton Soldier group. She imagined the only thing keeping them really safe was the nearby Ismara outpost which their village helped keep fed and paid and the fact that, unlike Black Saints, Skeleton Soldiers followed basic sets of war guidelines. Hades' foot soldiers would have to fight Ismara head on long before they could afford to turn their sights on the countryside.

They started hearing shouting and murmuring from afar. Curious, they headed towards the source of it and were surprised to see a large crowd gathered around a group of Sanctuary foot soldiers. They had posted a large sign reciting 'Join the army of Athena' in big, bold letters above an image of Athena's Colossus and now seemed to be encouraging potential volunteers. The captain in particular, seemed to be outright shouting at the crowd why they should offer their sons and local young orphans to Sanctuary's servitude.

"By the light of Athena, we beseech thee!" the captain pleaded, spreading out his arms to the people. "Answer the call of Sanctuary and of the cosmos. Even nowadays, Sanctuary struggles to protect the world from the Gods of Olympus. If you have a young son or daughter or are yourself young or with awakened cosmos, you can help our cause and give new meaning to your servitude by joining our ranks."

Alexis saw her father's expression growing grim and the people in the crowd mumbling even louder. A mother nearby tucked her sons together and several men exchanged suspicious glances. "What are they doing? They're drafting people?" she asked.

The captain saw the villagers were not convinced. Understandably, they were not willing to send their sons to what was sought to be certain death, but he insisted, as was his duty. "Families who send their sons or daughters to be trained into Sainthood will be amply subsidized by Sanctuary, as vows the Holy Father, Pope Arles III. The education, human rights and salary of said volunteers will also be guaranteed and further rewards await those who can conquer the approval of a Cloth. Moreover, the honor alone of becoming one of the selected few to wield the power of cosmos and become a part of the grand army which safeguards the dignity and liberty of human society shall be bestowed upon your family."

A man in the crowd near Alexis scoffed. "In other words, 'give us your kids and we'll be _grateful_ to you.' Bastards! It will be a black day before I send my son to die for your thirst for manpower." The skeptical man then walked away, not interested in sending any of his kids to training grounds were only one out of ten trainees were estimated to survive.

Another one also walked away while expressing his opinion. "Human rights! Yeah, sure, tell that to all my _three brothers_ you've sent to be captured and tortured by Black Saints!"

"The only thing they educate you in is how to shut up and kill!" a pacifist grumbled. "Children, family, friends; Heck, they'll have you murder pregnant women if it suits them!"

"They can shove their honor up the Pope's as-"

"Sign yourselves or your children up to join the army." the captain appealed one final time. "We do not accept signers above ten years old unless you have already awakened your cosmos. Have the courage and determination to become one of the soldiers of Sanctuary or, if you prove yourself worthy, one of the eighty eight Saints of Athena."

Alexis watched as a couple of the poorer children were taken to the soldiers' desk to be signed up by the adults. She stared at the Colossus in the sign for a while, intrigued. Her father saw this, grabbed her by the hand and took her away. "Forget about them, Alexis. No good ever comes from paying attention to what recruiters say."

The red-haired preteen obediently followed her father, but kept looking over her shoulder to the recruiters, skeptic villagers and the orphans being dragged into the desk. She shook her head to try to get it off her mind. Dad was right. Nothing good could come out of considering something so stupid.

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**Meanwhile, in southern Yugoslavia...**

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Andromeda Shinta came to a full stop when his team mate, the Pegasus Saint, abruptly halted his supersonic sprint. They had come across a town at the foot of the Dinaric Alps which cross along through much of the Yugoslav coast. Both Saints had stopped at a considerable distance from it, but they could still clearly make out details of the burning building.

Lance's red eyes squinted at the sight of destruction. It didn't seem to be work of Black Saints, but rather ordinary bombers. Several firefighters and police officers seemed to be surrounding the building. There was nothing they could do. "Come on Shinta, let's go."

Shinta blinked. "Lance, what happened there? Did a fire break out?"

Lance glanced at the blasted pillars and shattered steel frame. "No, it looks more like a terrorist strike from the separatists."

Shinta followed Lance, but unable to take his eyes off the destroyed building. He saw people being pulled out from the burning ruins and carried off by the ambulances. "This is terrible! Who would do such a thing?"

Lance sighed. "Terrorism is just like that, Shinta. When people have strong, desperate feelings about something or feel they are being oppressed, they'll do anything to force the government to listen to their demands."

"Shouldn't we do something?!" Shinta demanded to know.

"Well, Sanctuary would actually like to see Macedonia liberated, but it's not our fight."

"But, Lance-"

"Shinta, I thought I told you you'd better not be a pain in the ass for me as a forced teammate!" Lance shouted, startling the younger Bronze Saint. "Listen, Shinta, I know there are people down there in pain and in danger of dying, but it's not Sanctuary's place to interfere with the social matters of countries. We didn't kill Hitler when we had the chance and we're definitely not going to put our finger in something like this either! If there were people with awakened cosmos involved or if it was a terrible natural disaster, that would be different but, right now, this is something the nation has to figure out for itself."

Shinta opened his mouth to protest, but ended up nodding sadly, knowing that Lance was right. "I just thought that we could maybe help pull out some of the people there..."

"Oh yeah, that's a great idea!" Lance mocked. "We'll go down there, lift those tons of cement with our bare hands in front of everyone and then go all Jesus Christ on their asses by healing the burned with our magical powers. Yeah, maybe Sanctuary won't execute us for treason if we convince enough people that we're a traveling pair of witchdoctors. No, thank you, sir!"

Shinta nodded. He quietly followed Lance out of the area, reflecting on the matter. "Lance,... wouldn't you be able to say the same about Black Saints?" he asked. Lance squinted at him, indignant, so Shinta tried to make his point quickly. "I-I mean, I... Black Saints are like terrorists and criminals, but to Sanctuary rather than to a nation, right? Wouldn't some of them be just people who don't think Sanctuary is a just place?"

Lance hesitated. "I...You... Look, Shinta, do you want to let Black Saints run loose around the world?!" he asked. Shinta shook his head. "Well, then, don't you think they're dangerous and murderers and such?"

"Well, yes, some of them like Ray, but maybe a couple can be people with just reasons not to obey Sanctuary, right?" Shinta asked. "Maybe they don't believe in Athena. You hate Black Saints but you don't like Athena either, do you Lance?"

Lance stared at the innocent look in Shinta's eyes, which simply sought to quench a doubt he had rather than confront Lance with hypocrisy. Had it been anyone else other than the naive Saint asking him that, Lance would probably just brush it off as trash talk. He tried to change subject. "I h-have my reasons for hating those bastards, okay?! L-look, let's just forget about this! They're waiting for us at Ismara."

Shinta nodded obediently. He was sure that Lance, experienced as he was, had an answer to his question but was probably a cruel one or not for a novice's ears like his and so the Pegasus Saint kept it to himself.

"Seriously, I don't know why I have to keep explaining these things to you, Shinta." Lance complained. "It's like I have to be your big brother or something!"

Shinta chuckled. "Y-yeah, I suppose. It's like you have to be my _nissan_. I guess you are just so dependable."

Lance glanced at him. Did Shinta just compare him to a car brand? "It's like I have to be your what?"

"Oh, I mean, it's a Japanese endearing term for 'big brother'. Forget about it. It was just a silly thought." the younger Saint excused himself. As they were about to resume supersonic speed, Shinta's green eyes turned to the Dinaric Alps' peaks, which were coated in a layer of white even though it was still technically summer. "Look, Lance, the peaks are all white. Isn't it pretty?" he asked. Lance only grunted something incomprehensible. Shinta then had a great idea. "Hey, Lance, maybe we can cut some distance by going straight through these mountains since Ismara is just beyond them. What do you-"

"What?! NO! NO WAY! Forget about it!" Lance exploded all of a sudden. He nervously looked at the mountain peaks and quickly averted his gaze. "We'll keep going around them. We won't lose much time by going through our original course, okay?"

Shinta blinked. "But, Lance-"

"NO BUTS! We're going around through flat terrain and that's it! Now, come on!" Lance then sprinted forward at mach 5 without a word, forcing Shinta to cease the discussion so that he could keep up.

Even so, Shinta kept staring at Lance. What was that all about?

To further his surprise, the lid of Lance's Pegasus Cloth Box seemed to open up just a little. The Pegasus Cloth helmet red gems locked gaze with him. "_Don't worry, Shinta. Lance has his reasons not to go through that mountain range._"

Shinta widened his eyes. "Pegasus? Do you know why Lance acted so strange?"

The Pegasus Cloth nodded. "_I've watched over him since he first came to Mount Olympus. I know his strengths and weaknesses and also his fears. Lance wouldn't like me telling you about 'this', though. It's a... unique vulnerability he has._" he explained. "_Have patience, Shinta. He won't talk to me since I've kept myself hidden all this time, but maybe someday you can get him to become friendlier and confess things like this. He just doesn't trust enough in you yet._" The Pegasus Cloth then retreated back to its box.

The Andromeda Cloth, who had listened to the whole thing, scoffed inside hers. "_Oh, boo-ooh. I bet he insisted on going this way because he has a horrible trap awaiting us all. Don't trust that horse, Shinta. He's just as rotten as his owner if he let someone like Lance become it's Saint._"

The Pegasus Cloth didn't seem interested in responding to Andromeda's taunt. Shinta smirked. It was always interesting seeing their Cloths interacting, even if it consisted just of Pegasus' shy words being instantly attacked by Andromeda's mean-spirited comments.

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**Several hours later, at Ismara...**

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The afternoon had just passed when the two teammates arrived at their destination. Both Saints halted their march at the entrance of what was supposed to be the Sanctuary military outpost of Ismara. However, as both Saints widened their eyes and Shinta let out a small gasp of horror, the little that was left of what laid before them didn't match their expectations at all.

Lance's red eyes analyzed the destruction. The reinforced gate had been smashed down, the stone walls and watch towers had been shattered to ruin and several spots were blackened. The barracks were razed to the ground and clouds of black smoke emanated from everywhere, covering the sky. Several fires still raged all around the ruined base and the slaughtered corpses of foot soldiers littered the ground.

Shinta couldn't stop staring at the destruction. "W-what?! What... What happened here?!" he demanded to know. He rushed past the forced entrance into the base. "What happened to everyone? Is anyone out there? Please, answer!" he shouted.

Lance calmly followed the horrified teammate, his eyes turning left and right. He would be lying if he said he wasn't taken aback too. While Shinta kept shouting out in search for survivors, Lance walked towards one of the dead soldiers on the ground and knelt down. He took the shining object he had spotted on the floor into his hand.

The Andromeda Saint covered his mouth and contained tears. He ended up having to cover his nose, too, as the stench of burnt corpses infiltrated his nostrils and made his stomach want to turn upside down. "N-no! This... this is too a-awful! Who did this?" He then turned to Lance, who seemed to be analyzing something he had picked up. "L-Lance what happened here?!"

"It was recent, so much that we were the first to discover this." Lance hummed in reflection. "I found an arrowhead by this dead man. It seems like the work of Skeleton Soldiers." he explained "Black Saints occasionally raid Sanctuary Bases, but they'd rather use high-caliber guns and rockets. Hades' soldiers, however, though they use primarily scythes and medieval melee weapons, are also known to use crossbows." He knelt down once more and analyzed the footprints. "Yeah, it definitely was a Skeleton Soldier raid."

Shinta looked at the footsteps in the sandy ground, but didn't detect anything special. "Why do you say that?"

Lance pointed at the heterogeneous-looking feet marks. "Black Saints can't craft foot soldier equipment of their own, so they often rely on stealing it from Sanctuary and others. This is because even the foot soldiers' armor and weapons is built by the Lemurians in Tibet. It's an effective alternative, but I'm sure you've noticed Black Saints don't seem to wear similar sets of armor, right?"

Shinta recalled all his missions that involved said enemies. They always carried vicious looking weapons and armor, but they were always very varied. He nodded his head. "Y-yeah, I think you're right."

"That means that the metal footing they wear, if they wear any, are often of different design styles. Hades's army, however, is professional. Skeleton Soldiers are drilled and equipped in the same manner and style. Even if people have different boot sizes, the foot protections all look the same." Lance's finger pointed once more at the footprints. "In all my missions hunting Black Saints, their footwear always seemed to have different shapes or a little add-on that altered the silhouette of the footprints. Some of them wore normal boots or even sandals. These footprints, however, were made by standardized metal equipment. Right now, the only active standing army besides' Sanctuary that could take this base out like this is that of Hades himself. Bastards! They're going to pay!"

The Saint of Andromeda nodded, still wishing to find explanations even though not sharing Lance's vindictive desire. Still, he was impressed by Lance's tracking skills. It was always amazing how Lance could deduce so much from so little. The looming threat of something much worse than whatever had happened in that base entered Shinta's head. "Wait, what does this mean, Lance? Does it mean Holy War is starting?"

Lance got up. "Well.. from what I've been told, Hades' declarations of war are usually a lot flashier than this sort of thing, like an Eclipse out of time or a sudden major assault on the Golden Zodiac during the night. This doesn't mean Holy War is starting. In fact...Holy War isn't expected until another twenty years. I'd say this is just normal, regular... _border friction_." Lance seemed to be disgusted by this term. "But you're right, Shinta, this unprovoked attack is too awful!"

Lance then rushed towards a half-intact watchtower and climbed to its top. From there he looked all over the surrounding forest area. Shinta tried to keep up. "What is it, Lance?"

"I'm trying to determine just what kind of force passed through here. If it was an army, there would be damage to the surrounding area during both the march and the siege. It had to be a regiment small enough to be organized into sneaking to Ismara's walls but powerful enough to take the base out quickly. Ismara had no Saints guarding it, only foot soldiers. I also don't think Ismara wouldn't be able to send an SOS via mental message or something else if they were just facing Skeleton Soldiers. The strange thing is..." Lance then jumped down from the damaged tower. "No one felt the attack from afar. I have heard Gold Saints possess an insane capacity to sense cosmos which is connected to why they are so powerful and fast, so..."

"It was a small group of Skeleton Soldiers with a few strong members, but not too strong to be detected?" Shinta concluded.

The Pegasus Saint scratched his chin. "Yeah, something like that. Maybe a couple of Terrestrial Stars with them." Lance sweated nervously, suddenly confronted by a tough choice. "They must be still in the area. We have to notify Sanctuary, but what if they attack someone else in the meantime? What do we do?"

For the first time they were teamed up, Shinta saw Lance truly undecided. The red-eyed youth kept looking at Shinta and back to the ruins, as if considering choices. Shinta's green eyes also turned to the burned chaos of blackened corpses and buildings. He tightened his fists in resolution and decided to support Lance. "Let's go after them."

Pegasus blinked. "What?"

Shinta looked down on a corpse. "I know I'm probably surprising you with this, but I want to go after them with you." he said. "What they've done here is too awful. We have to find them and take them down before they can hurt someone else. Neither of us know how to send mental messages far enough to reach Sanctuary from so far so going back for help will put people here in danger." Shinta waited a small bit to judge Lance's reaction to his decision. He didn't seem happy with it. "I want to help you stop these people, Lance. Let me help you."

Lance shook his head. "No way. Forget it, Shinta! I'll go after them while you go warn Sanctuary and get help. If I run into them they might just be weak enough for me to take down. If they are too strong, I'll just keep watching their movements."

"But what if they are too strong and they attack someone in the meantime?" Shinta protested. "Lance don't you trust me? Let me help you defeat them-"

"I said NO! Go back to Sanctuary right now and warn someone. This is not on your league, Shinta! This is serious!" he shouted. Shinta widened his eyes in shock. "If they attack someone...I'll do what I can. I'll stall them, save as many people as I can...I'll just DO something!"

Silence fell between them for a while, as the Andromeda Saint found himself surprised to see in Lance such an intense desire to protect whomever the Skeleton Soldiers would put in danger. More and more, Shinta felt like the rumors about the Pegasus Saint in Sanctuary were nothing more than that. Maybe the cold distant warrior Bronze Saint truly had a good heart.

Moreover, for the first time since Shinta met the Pegasus Saint, he saw him worried and perhaps even a bit scared. This frightened Shinta as well, who was so used to see Lance as the stronger of the two. Shinta, however, had his own strength. He placed his hand on Pegasus' shoulder. "Lance, you can count on me. I know I don't seem very reliable in combat, but..." Shinta then hesitated, should he tell Lance about _it_? Master Guardnia had made a fuss about ensuring Shinta kept it a secret. "There is something that I can do. It's dangerous to those around me, but..." Once more, words failed to come out of his mouth.

The Pegasus Saint turned to him in curiosity, but his professional side got the better of him. "If it's dangerous, then it may not be worth the risk... Is it a technique of yours?" Shinta nodded as an answer. Lance squinted at him. There was no way Shinta's level of cosmos could produce an attack powerful enough to take on several Terrestrial Stars at once. Moreover, the possibility of a Celestial Star, an elite Specter, being with the enemy worried him immensely.

"SHIT! If I let you come with me and something bad happens, that will be the end of it, but if you go get help then there's still hope for a bad situation." he argued, but something else preoccupied him. "_But what if the both of us can take them out but not just me? A lot of time and lives could be saved if I just trust Shinta..._" He looked over to Shinta's green eyes, who awaited an answer. Did he trust his partner's strength, or did he not? "I...Shit, I can't take that risk! I can't let more people die around me like that. Shinta, listen to me. Go to the nearest Sanctuary outpost and warn someone. I'll try to find the bastards and maybe hold them off for a while, if I can. Do you understand?"

Shinta opened his mouth to say something, but kept quiet. He trusted in Lance's judgment and strength. He was a more experienced Saint than the green-haired boy and he surely knew what he was doing. "But what if you-"

"Head straight there and don't look back. I'm counting on you." he warned. Shinta however kept staring at him, worried that Lance would get hurt or killed. Lance sighed. Sometimes, he had the feeling Shinta really _did_ look up to him as a big brother or something. "I've been doing this sort of thing for a long time, Shinta. I've taken down foes stronger than me in the past. Playing it safe is my specialty. I'll be fine."

Shinta gulped in nervousness, but nodded. "Alright, I understand. I won't let you down, Lance." Shinta then took Lance's forearm and grasped it tightly. "Don't get hurt, okay?"

It was Lance's turn to hesitate. He eventually answered Shinta's gesture of comradeship evenly. Shinta then departed the scene by sprinting off at Mach 1 speed, heading straight for the nearest Sanctuary base.

Lance then found himself alone on the ruined Ismara. His red eyes narrowed and his fists tightened. If the trouble at the DQI area wasn't enough, now he was embroiled in this dangerous mess, too.

Handling Skeleton Soldiers was always a lot more risky than mere Black Saints. They had usually much tougher morale and took a lot more risks than Sanctuary's foot soldiers due to being zealots obsessed with their 'chosen people' complex and, unlike Athena's men who were trained to guard and protect, Hades' troops were raised to wage war and torture their victims. A well-coordinated regiment of Hell's troops was usually enough to endanger a fully trained Bronze Saint's life. Led by a Specter, they could be a force to be reckoned with.

Lance followed the trail of footsteps out of the base and started tracking down the bastards' path through the woods. It would take a while, but he would find them, hopefully before screams were heard at the distance.

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**Meanwhile, in the outskirts of Arcadia...**

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Bennu Yakos and his renegade group of Skeleton soldiers silently took cover among the trees that filled the hillside that overlooked the Sanctuary village of Arcadia. The white-haired youth's green eyes squinted viciously at the sight of all the townspeople walking back and forth. Behind him, his men took cover behind their own rocks, trees and bushes, hiding the black shine of their armor and the blood-soaked edges of their weapons before their lord gave the order.

Yakos's disdainful stare intensified. "Look at them...Servants of Sanctuary." he announced. "Leading simple lives in a simple town. Occasionally offering tribute and manpower to Athena ensures their safety, much like cattle sheltered by a farmer. What pathetic, meaningless lives they must lead...led around by Athena through the feed in her hand..." he commented. "Yet..., our lives are even more pathetic than theirs,... aren't they?!"

The Skeleton Soldiers all around him nodded calmly. "Yes, pathetic..." one of them muttered. "Pathetic lives..."

"Meaningless existences..."

"Slaves..."

"Lambs..."

"Cattle for slaughter..."

"Just a bunch of _fools_!" one finalized, to which many of his comrades concurred through angered grunting and tightening of grasp on their weapons.

"Men...Today, we make the day as dark as the night!" Yakos announced. "Everyone will feel our anger, our burning hatred, our revolt! The rivers will run red with the blood that will be stained today. No one shall be spared! NO ONE!" he shouted. His men shouted back at him, their black hearts set on fire by their lord's words. Yakos's black cosmos burned all around his body in the shape of a dark flame. It started moving up towards his shoulder, crawled around his arm and then focused on his palm in the shape of a black ball of energy. "Today, Sanctuary burns with our anger!" Yakos then crushed the ball of energy with his fingers, causing them to be set on fire that failed to harm him. "Shaman, do it!"

Shaman Kairos, a Specter of Hades with a Surplice themed after a Native American witchdoctor, appeared from within the trees and took Yakos' side. His helmet was shaped like a wolf's head, protecting his chin and neck with the wolf's lower jaw. He had shoulder pads shaped like bear claws, a segmented torso protection, a belt with an eagle insignia on it from to his tight protections were linked and a large hide-like cape raining down his back.

Furthermore, he had a round shield doubling as a drum strapped around his left gauntlet and carried a long staff with a hollow sphere head, reminiscent to Athena's own staff. "Yes...I will turn the day as black as the night for these miserable creatures!" He then drummed his shield with his stuff a couple of times and burned his cosmos. He spread out his hands to the sky. "**Black RAVEN!**" he shouted to the heavens.

All of a sudden, the clouds started shifting swiftly, covering the sun, and the mountainous horizon seemed to be covered with a strange mist. The villagers in Arcadia started looking up, gasping and pointing at the sky, unsure of what was going on.

"Soon it will be as dark as the night... and the Gold Saints will not sense cosmos through my spell." Kairos explained.

An evil flame burned in Yakos' green eyes. "And before the sun shines once more in this village, everyone on it will be dead!"

Yakos and Kairos then slowly marched forward towards the village, stalked by their soldiers. Scythes and swords rattled all around them. Maybe this was not what the Star of Pride had intended for them, but Yakos did not care. He would satiate his frustration with Sanctuary's blood long before anyone could stop him.

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Bond Forged by Fire Part 2

**Release Date:** 3rd August 2014

**Description**: Night unexpectedly falls in Arcadia. As fire and destruction suddenly breaks out in Alexis' village she finds herself in a sudden fight for life only alleviated by the arrival of a Saint of Athena.


	7. 1A: Bonds Forged By Fire Part 2 of 3

**N****otable OCs up until**** now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; MMC; Sanctuary Forts and Outposts

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests

**Author notes**:

_Please enjoy and review._

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**A couple of moments earlier, at the eastern Alps foot...**

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The Saint and Soldier regiment followed their leader, Silver Saint Cynthia of Cassiopeia as they arrived at the gates of Peloponesia, a Sanctuary fortress located in western Austria, almost next the mountains. She was a blonde woman in her mid twenties with red outlines around her mask's eyes, a white trainer and who carried a silver-colored Cloth Box around her back.

She had just gotten back from East Berlin where she and her men had been discreetly supporting the construction of passages between the two halves of the former German capital. A lot of their work had involved blasting underground rock passages open with their fists while trying to disguise the sounds and avoid damaging the city's sewers, but also escorting people across the Wall.

The Amazon looked at the fortress' defenses. It was more of a fort than a fortress, since it lacked the high towers and inner castles of medieval fortifications that overlooked the walls from within. Rather than following the old method of escalating rings of defense, Peloponesia, much like the outposts it oversaw such as Ismara, consisted of several small buildings surrounded by a close set of taller walls. The only difference between this particular Sanctuary fortification and the rest which granted it a 'grander look and purpose', was the double walling and the fact it had Saints guarding it, rather than just foot soldiers.

In a world with people capable of punching through steel, walls played an inglorious role. Rather than being what held the invaders back, they were more for preventing the defenders from being caught by surprise by forcing the attacker to make noise when initiating battle. The double walling of Peloponesia would then give them enough time to organize themselves, even if just a little. This almost always meant that the walls were also connected via a reinforced bedrock so as to prevent the foe from digging under them without the defenders noticing. It was often joked in Sanctuary that the only thing stopping the walls and forts from becoming obsolete was the fact that the cosmos couldn't make you fly.

Many people and soldiers advocated that they should should reinforce the fortress' walls, and many other defenses throughout Sanctuary's zone of control for that matter, with the same material that allowed Cloths to withstand earth-shattering attacks; stardust. The alchemic substance was virtually omnipresent in any Cloth, Surplice or God Robe out there. Many structures in the Golden Zodiac contained it and using it to make the walls actually resistant to cosmos attacks and, as such, it was often requested to be used by many people wanting to preserve the soldiers' lives. There was a problem with this plan, though.

Stardust was rare.

Despite being a component of alchemy, stardust was one of the toughest substances to obtain. The silver-colored substance was mostly gathered from meteor shower impact zones or obtained from a very unique mine networks, which by themselves were mostly located in meteor crash sites, and the material was still always obtained in scathingly small amounts. Synthesizing it had been proven impossible unless one threw a huge rock across space and waited for it to be exposed to certain radiations and exploding stars and then return in one piece. Most of the stardust ever gathered had been used to build armor and only the Lemurians seemed to be able to work with it. Last time she had checked, the Black Market had price tags on the stuff ranking near the billions of dollars per_ pound_. The only thing really stopping people in Sanctuary from taking advantage of this was the Golden Zodiac's promise of a slow, unpleasant death in Cape Suinon.

She greeted the gate guard, who had the portcullis raised so they could enter. They were to report to the leading officer and to be reassigned immediately.

The blonde Amazon turned to her men. "Alright, we're at Peloponesia. Good job, everyone. After all those weeks escorting people across the wall, it feels good to be back, doesn't it?" Several of them nodded and let out small cheers of agreement. "Take the chance to rest. I'm sure the Fort Commander will have more assignments for us soon," she instructed. Her subordinate Saints and soldiers started spreading out towards the forts inner buildings to go on with their lives.

One of the Bronze Saints who were assigned to work with her shook her hand. "Thank you for everything, Saint Cynthia. You helped a lot. We were having a lot of trouble digging the passages without the Soviets noticing."

"Don't mention it. It's my job to instruct." she answered. "If the guys back at Berlin just stick to the plan I laid out for you you'll be fine."

"What will you do now, Saint Cynthia?"

Cynthia took a moment to think about her next move. Sanctuary always had something to do even if the Silver Saints seemed to spend most of their time goofing off in Sanctuary Town. Still, there was the small chance they would give her some off time."If possible, I'd like to go meet a student of Saint Cepheus Guardnia who graduated half a year ago. I haven't seen him in a while...not since he became a Saint."

The Bronze Saint widened his eyes. "Saint Cepheus Guardnia, the King of Andromeda Island? You mean someone actually survived his training?" Cynthia didn't seem to enjoy his comment, as she lowered her chin slightly and remained quiet for a bit, a subtle Amazon gesture that usually meant a narrowing of eyes behind their masks. "Oh, I apologize, I didn't mean to insult him."

She raised her hand. "It's fine, but Guardnia is a dear friend of mine. I've worked with him my whole life. Yes, Andromeda Island is the second worst Training Ground, but Guardnia does his best to maximize survival rates there and nothing has been more devastating to him than having to see each and every student of his die." She then sighed. "Though, to tell you the truth, I didn't expect Shinta to survive either... He's a good kid. I hope he's doing okay." The Bronze Saint's expression darkened a bit. "What? What is it?"

"Oh, nothing, Saint Cynthia, it's just that... I've heard that Pegasus Lance paired up with a Saint named like that."

Cynthia stared at him for a while. "What?!" she suddenly shouted. "Pegasus Lance, the guy that beat up Kastiel? Why is Shinta with him?!" she demanded to know.

The Bronze Saint shrugged his shoulders. "I-I'm not sure, Saint Cynthia." he stuttered. Her revolt was quite clear from her tone of voice despite her masked expression. "A lot of people wonder that, too. It's a really bizarre combination. They say the Pope paired them up-"

"WHY?!" she shouted once more. "Why would he do that?! Doesn't he know what kind of person Pegasus is?" Cynthia grabbed her temples and felt her heart fill with worry. Was Shinta okay? Did Guardnia know about this? She found it unlikely, he would never allow such a thing to happen, even under his Silver Cloth's influence. "Oh, dear Athena, even after all that trouble in the Pacific... why does the Pope keep tolerating that Saint?" she muttered. Her first instinct was to rush off to Sanctuary to find Shinta and learn more about his situation, but duty called first. She had to finish her affairs there and then try to find an opportunity to return to Greece.

The Bronze Saint saluted her. "I hope everything turns out to be fine. May Athena be with you, Saint Cynthia," he wished before heading off.

Cynthia nodded, but was too preoccupied to properly answer. She had to talk to Guardnia and, if possible, with someone in the Golden Zodiac. She couldn't let this stand, but first, to report to the Fort Commander.

However, when about to head to the main building, she was then treated to a commotion and spectacle as she saw several soldiers gathering around what seemed like a couple of Saints escorting said leading officer out.

Cynthia rushed over to them and confronted the situation. "Excuse me, what is going on here?!" The officer didn't answer. It was then the Amazon noticed he was in shackles. "Is this an arrest?"

The escorts flashed their Papal Guard pins. "Please, step aside. This is an official matter of the Golden Zodiac. If you were to answer to this man, please report now to the new officer in charge." He then pointed at the person.

Cynthia's eyes widened behind her mask. She saw a very tall, stern-looking man in his late thirties with long, black hair and short beard demanding in equally stern voice all sorts of reports from the soldiers around him. The man turned his hawkish green eyes to her and decided to grace them with his towering presence.

Up close, the man seemed even more imposing. He narrowed his eyes at the former commander. "Is that incompetent still here? Take him away." The two Papal Guards instantly obeyed and carried the prisoner away. His green eyes then turned to the Amazon's mask. He saw the Cloth Box in her back and immediately identified her rank. "Saint Cassiopeia? Are you one of the disorganized idiots working in Peloponesia?"

Saint Cynthia widened her eyes, but shook her head politely. She had dealt with his type before. "Actually, I was operating in Berlin, so I'm just temporarily assigned here. Would you please explain to me what is happening here? Is the Commander going to jail?" she demanded to know.

"_Former_ Commander, and no, he is not going to jail but he is going to be facing an investigation." He raised his chin at the Silver Saint. "I am Ionia, the new Fort Commander of Peloponesia and its outposts. I was assigned to turn this mess of a fortress into a properly organized military institution by order of the Pope and by recommendation of the Noble Council." he declared without any form of salute or other introductory gesture, clearly uninterested in showing any subordination to her.

Cynthia looked around. Everyone seemed to be doing their job. The guards were attentively watching everything and everyone, she could hear shouts and insults from the drill square and all the regiments seemed to be marching in formation. "Everything seems fine to me." she commented.

Ionia scoffed. "Oh, yes, fine indeed! Which is exactly why the man formerly in charge is currently being taken away to Sanctuary to face accusations of security incompetence and perhaps, with some luck, treason."

Cynthia widened here eyes. Now she just had to know what happened. "Would you mind explaining to me once and for all what is all of this?"

"Information leaking and a significant one at that." Ionia explained. "It was discovered that several documents were missing from this fortress. Personally, I find it inexcusable that a frontier fortification would allow something like that to happen. The people here kept so little track of their documentation that it wasn't discovered until a little while ago that some file offices were illegally accessed. The security measures are completely out of date!" he complained. "Right now, the Three Judges could be looking at a list of each and every outpost in the Austria-Bavaria area. This is the most important frontier between Sanctuary and Hades' Land. In times of war, those outposts duty switches from law enforcement and village protection to scouting and vigilance. Their secrecy is imperative! If that wasn't enough, I found out the contact links we keep with said outposts are unreliable. Some of them don't report for weeks on end!"

Cynthia nodded, not wanting to start a discussion she couldn't really argue against. The fact of the matter was that due to the nature of the Gods' reincarnation cycles, real war wasn't waged all of a sudden and peace with certain deities was often pretty much safeguarded for centuries on end. No one wanted to start a war with Sanctuary without their God by their side; the Specters were no exception. She admitted that this created a rather lax attitude during peace time because everyone knew war wouldn't start for another twenty years.

The result was that the outposts, such as Ismara, reported very little and not very regularly and this was sort of tolerated and understood by the overseeing forts, such as Peloponesia. Ionia, however, didn't seem like the kind of person to tolerate any sort of indiscipline and laziness. As a trainer, Cynthia understood his frustration completely. As a former trainee, though, she sympathized with the guards that had to watch all the boring "nothing" and do elaborate reports on it for guys like Ionia.

"_Guardnia would love this guy._" she thought to herself. "You seem to have a strong intention of disciplining everyone here. As a Trainer, though, I recommend you back your words with gestures. Foot soldiers need a strong leash, not a loud one."

"Words _are_ power." the tall man commented. "Don't worry about me. I have full intention of seeing my duty through."

"I never doubted it. You must admit, though, that the new bureaucratic system imposed by the Pope is a bit...paranoiac?" she asked, referring to the Pope's sudden insane craving for information about the tiniest things. "Several of my comrades often complain about it, Saint Kastiel of Kerberus in particular. I also found several things required in my report charts wildly unnecessary, such as the _birth date_ and _eye color_ of several of the people involved in some of my missions."

Ionia instantly squinted at her. "The number of Black Saints has been rising precisely because Sanctuary had zero control over things." Ionia argued. He had noticed Cassiopeia was yet to salute him. "That same old bureaucratic system even made hierarchy unclear, since there was no established superiority relation between your rank of Silver Saint and my position of Fort Commander. People did what they wanted when they wanted without anyone knowing or bothering to check. Not on my watch, though. In fact," he then pulled out a chart with a list of the outposts. "since you're still assigned here until I let you loose, I want you to go inspect several of the unruly outposts under my jurisdiction immediately. Start with Ismara, since they've been detecting signs of unusual Specter movement in the area. I've received word that two Bronze Saints were sent there already, but I want to send someone that will report to me, rather than to the MMC. Determine the exact nature of that movement and demand a full report from the soldiers in charge of the outpost. You can take a couple of the useless excuses for soldiers here if you wish, but I expect a report from you as well."

Cynthia watched as Ionia went on his way and wondered how long it would be before Sanctuary started getting complaints from the soldiers about him. Strict as he was, Ionia still didn't seem to have been military at one point as there was no bragging about a former Saint title or even the emanation of a strong cosmos. She wasn't sure what exactly he meant with words being power, but unless Ionia had strong retainers to act as drill sergeants, the soldiers would never listen to him for long.

He reminded her of Akassios, the codename of the Gemini Saint preceding that new, blue-haired youth the Pope put in the third temple. Akassios, too, was a strict person who demanded a lot from everyone around him, which was why he had been able to organize a counter effort during the Third Civil War eleven years before, when everything was in chaos. But Akassios was ridiculously strong, even for his rank. People respected his willpower and feared his strength.

Then again, she could be wrong. Maybe Ionia had served as a Saint in the distant past and just wasn't showing that off.

Still, she sighed. She was used to authoritative people like Ionia but would have liked an opportunity to go check out Shinta. If she wanted to get off Ionia's hook as soon as possible, she would better start right then and do a perfect job while at it.

While heading back to gate so as to leave, she passed by a pair of soldiers arguing.

"Calm down, man." one said. "It was very late. You probably just saw things."

"I know what I saw, okay?!" said the second soldier. "I'm telling you! I saw something moving around in the offices at night. It looked like-"

"Batman?!" The other interrupted, sick of that crazy story. "Come on, man! Be serious! You were half-asleep and probably drunk off your ass! No one could have sneaked like that into the Fort with everyone keeping watch."

"It wasn't _freaking_ _Batman_!" the second soldier protested. "I'm telling you, it looked like a demon of some sort...Maybe a Specter or, I don't know, something! I thought it was nothing but now everyone's saying there was a leak! What if-"

"Keep quiet, you idiot! The fort's office keeps losing papers all the time! Even if you're telling the truth, if Ionia finds out about that rambling of yours he'll have you shipped off to Bluegrad just like the old commander for not stopping whatever you thought was going on. Besides, Holy War isn't supposed to come until another two decades. Hades probably hasn't even formed a proper army yet and is probably just sitting his ass in that Underworld throne of his with some Nymph blowing him."

"But Ionia said-"

"_Fuck_ what Ionia said! I'm not having my ass frozen in Russia over his zeal. Damn the Gods, I have a life here, a fiancee in Innsbruck! Why would a Specter show up here like that and not kill anyone, huh? The walls are fine and everyone is accounted for. Why would he leave without sabotaging us in some way?"

The second soldier seemed to calm down with this point of view. "Y-yeah, good point,... you're probably right. I _was_ a bit drowsy then. It was probably one... of the office guys. Maybe they forgot something there... Or maybe something else..."

The first soldier then seemed to notice Cynthia passing by. He squinted at her and dragged his friend away into the barracks. "Come on, man, let's go!"

Cynthia's mask stared at them for a while, memorizing their faces and making a mental note to, when she got back, mention them to Ionia. She felt sorry for them but their conversation was way too fishy to just let go of it, especially with an information leaking incident having just happened.

The Amazon Silver Saint then left the fort of Peloponesia, charged her cosmos and headed out towards Ismara at the speed of sound.

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Some time after she had left the fort the Silver Saint finally reaching the German forests that filled Ismara's surroundings. She slowed down a bit so as to enter the tree-filled terrain more easily and started sprinting across the woods. Her mask looked up to the sky and saw strange rain clouds moving around in the distance. Was it raining in the villages up ahead?

As she made her way, her thoughts returned to Guardnia's star student. She still remembered meeting him for the first time, when Shinta was ending his second year. His Master had brought him and his classmates to Rodario for the Eighty Eight Knights Festival, a yearly cultural celebration that took place in Sanctuary. She remembered thinking that out of the whole bunch in Cepheus' tutelage, the green haired pacifist was the one the Island who would probably claim the Cepheus Cloth next.

Shinta shocked her by being the only one to survive.

"_Maybe he's okay._" she thought to herself, reminded of the amazing spirit the boy had. "_But he's paired up with someone who got away with attacking a Silver Saint superior... I don't like any of the stories __afterward either__._" she recalled. Between having grown attached to the sweet kid and him being proof that Guardnia wasn't a failure of a Master, Cynthia couldn't help but worry about Shinta's well being. She was sure that after getting his Cloth, Shinta would go straight back to Japan to be with his mother, so what was he doing teaming up with an Assault Saint?

As if to provide an answer to her worrying heart, a familiar cosmos suddenly flared up right in front of her. Cynthia's eyes widened in shock. She stopped her march by a clearing and sent a mental message forward. "_Shinta?! Is that you?_"

It took a bit, but an equally surprised mental voice was returned. "_Saint Cynthia?_" A pink-armored Saint suddenly rushed out of the woods before the Amazon and stopped at the sight of her. Shinta's jaw dropped. Though stressed by the urgency of his situation, his mouth couldn't help but quirk into a wide smile. "Saint Cynthia! What are you doing here?"

"I...I should ask you the same. I was heading for Ismara, an outpost up ahead." she explained, raising her hand at the northern regions and still baffled by the coincidence of meeting Shinta in that place. "I was going to inspect it for a bit at request of the new Commander of Peloponesia, down south. You... Shinta, why are you here?"

Reminded of Ismara, Shinta's expression suddenly became grim. He'd love nothing more than to catch up with the Amazon, but he had an urgent job to do. He thanked Athena that Saint Cynthia showed up there so suddenly. "It's... It's horrible! S-Saint Cynthia, Ismara is... Ismara is in _ruins_."

Her mask stared at him for a bit. "...Wait, what?! Ruins?!"

Shinta's eyes welled up for a second. He nodded frantically. "Y-yes! Me and Saint Lance were just heading for it for an assignment and... and everyone there was dead."

"What are you talking about?" she wondered. Athena, her entire day had been nothing but twists. She could tell that Shinta was clearly bothered and stressed. She grabbed him by the arms."What happened?"

The green-haired Saint nodded obediently and told her how he and Lance had been sent there at request of the outpost only to find it razed. He also said how Lance thought Specters were behind as well as his plan of action to have Shinta ask for reinforcements.

Cynthia listened carefully. This was serious. She looked the teen over. "Are you okay? You weren't attacked on the way here, were you?"

Shinta shook his head. "I'm fine, thank you, but Lance needs our help. He said he'd be careful, but he wants to try and stop as many of them as he can. We have to go to him."

"Hold on, don't worry, I'll ask for help, okay?" The Silver Saint touched her temple to help her concentrate for a long distance mental message. The Amazon was more experienced at it than the Andromeda Saint and could surely reach further than him. She tried to pick up the cosmos at Peloponesia. However, as soon as she tried to form her message and send it, she felt a shadow loom over the two of them.

Both Saints looked up to see the rain clouds multiplying and expanding. A foreboding feeling ran up their spine as the sun was covered up and the distant cosmos they could barely pick up back at the fort started vanishing from their reach, as if somehow jammed.

Their heads then turned to the direction the clouds came. "...Shinta, what villages are in that direction? Isn't there a mining town there?" she asked the Bronze Saint.

Shinta nodded as a drop of sweat ran down his temple. "I-I think there's a village called Arcadia that way, yes. Me and Lance saw it at a distance when we were heading for the outpost." Shinta then gasped. "Oh no! That's the direction Lance went!"

The Amazon gulped. She put her hand on Shinta's shoulder and nodded at him for encouragement. "Darn it! I can't ask for help via mental message."

"What do we do then? Can we call for assistance any other way?" Shinta asked.

"Not unless one of us heads for Peloponesia. You should head there, Shinta. It will be safer for you and-"

"NO! I don't want to leave it to the two of you just like that! What if you get killed?" Shinta protested, surprising her. "I can help, you know I can."

Cynthia nodded. "Yes, Shinta, but your cosmos-"

Shinta grabbed her hand suddenly and his eyes narrowed in determination. "I... I can do this. I can help the two of you. Just don't ask me to let two people I care about throw themselves into danger while all I do is go back for more help. I'm a Saint and...I can fight, too. I can fight to protect you and save those people."

The Silver Saint's widened eyes stared at the pacifistic boy vow that he would fight by their side. It felt like just the day before Guardnia would be asking her for advice in how to motivate Shinta to raise his fists. Cynthia then remembered why Shinta had been able to pass all the tests of Andromeda Island despite the fact neither Guardnia or herself believed he could.

She put her hands on her hips and sighed. "It still feels hard to believe you're not a trainee anymore. You have become quite the man. Guardnia must be really proud of you."

The Andromeda Saint widened his eyes, touched. "Saint Cynthia..."

"...Alright, Shinta. You win."

Shinta seemed to brighten up. "You'll let me help you?"

"Yes. It's a miracle I ran into you here, Shinta. If we combine our chains, we'll probably save more lives than by having you go back even further. Maybe if we meet up with Pegasus we'll have a chance to stop the raiding group." she suggested. She had no liking towards Saint Pegasus and what he had done to Kastiel, but now was the time to forget about the past and fight together as Saints. "Hold on a bit."

Shinta watched as Cynthia put down her Cloth box, opened it up and took out from within a flare gun. "Are you going to call for help?"

The Amazon covered one ear, pointed the gun upwards, unlocked the safety and pulled the trigger, firing a bright flare into the sky that burst into a shower of light. "There have been situations were I couldn't afford to use a mental message for fear of interception. Hopefully this weird weather will make the flare more visible at the distance. If one of the nearby villages spot this, they'll answer with a flare and go call for help." She then bit her lip inside her mask. "I should have brought a couple of men! I could have sent one of them back to get reinforcements, but I had no idea something like this could be happening. I also wish we had met each other after so much time in better circumstances. I had much to ask you."

Shinta waited for a bit to see if anyone replied to the flare. "It's good to see you, too, Saint Cynthia." he confessed. At the distance, a small flare was shot in reply. Shinta's eyes softened, worried about Lance and scared of the rising tension he was feeling. The two of them then sprinted towards the mining village of Arcadia.

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**Chapter 7**

**First Arc**

**Episode 5**

**Bonds Forged by Fire**

**Part 2 of 3**

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**Meanwhile, in Arcadia...**

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Alexis flipped the page on her math book and started writing down more exercises. All of a sudden, the light shining on her notes from the window dimmed. Her green eyes looked through it. "It's dark already?"

Her Mom spared the dark clouds a glance. "Probably rain, but it is a bit sudden..."

The teenage girl tried to focus back on her studies. Math was probably her least favorite subject, right next to Greek and Sanctuary History. She'd much rather be at PE class most of the time than learning about past Popes and Gold Saints. There was nothing particularly fascinating about memorizing Athena's human names and how many Specters each Gold Saint killed.

In fact, hard working as she was, the villager girl still had a tough time in most school subjects. She always felt more comfortable with classes with a bit less focus on theory and more on practice. Alexis did her best to keep her grades up, but often found herself sighing with how unenthusiastic she felt with most of her homework.

She saw her dad wincing in his chair over the pain in his leg and back. Her Mom was cleaning dishes and seemed to complain about similar things every so often. Alexis' eyes softened and her hand rested on the notebook from all the writing. She stared at her knuckles for a while, thinking deeply about what she had seen that afternoon.

She stole glances towards her parents repeatedly for a bit, trying to gather courage to let out what was in her throat. She sighed deeply, summoned her bravery and finally let it out. "Hmm... Mom, Dad?"

"Yes, honey, what is it?"

"I was thinking... what if I..." She then hesitated. Her father stopped what he was doing and turned to her. "What if I joined the... army?"

The sound of a plate falling and crashing on the ground was heard. They turned to her mom and saw her pale and wide-eyed. "W-What?! What did you say?"

Alexis stuttered. "I-I... I mean... I thought that maybe I could do something to-"

Her mom rushed over and gabbed her by the arms. "Alexis, where did you get that stupid idea?! Do you even realize what you're asking?" she asked frenetically. She turned to her husband. "Did you say something to her today!?"

"N-NO, I didn't!" the father quickly excused. "I mean, we passed by that group of soldiers recruiting, but I dragged her out of there. Alexis! Why are you saying something like that? The army is no place for you!"

"B-but I..." Alexis tried to find words. Her parents kept glaring at her as if she had said something sacrilegious. "I thought I could help around the house. They said they pay well and I fit the recruitment requirements-"

"Help?!" her mom shouted. "We don't need any help, Alexis! What in Athena's name gave you that idea?! We're doing fine! Just because your father is a bit achy from the mine work and we haven't been able to farm enough-"

"MOM, I saw the bills!" Alexis found herself shouting, sick of her parents keeping it away from her a dire situation that had been dragging on for months. "I-I saw the bills. You haven't been able to pay several of them for months now...If you drag that on for too long... I-I... I d-don't..." She felt her eyes welling up and her throat tightening. "You guys look s-sadder every day...I j-just wanted to help...I could go try to become a Saint and I'd send you guys money every now and then."

The expression on her parents' faces darkened at the realization that their secret was out. No longer feeling the need to hide it, their faces fell immediately to the depressed frowns they had been trying to hide from her for so long. Her father got up from his table. "Alexis, honey, you have to understand that the situation is... it's not your responsibility. It's not so bad either." he tried to fake a smile. "Sometimes there is plenty of work and money and some days aren't. That's life. You don't have to go join the army just because of it-"

"NO! Absolutely NOT!" her mom shouted. "My daughter is not joining the Saints! I won't let her!"

Alexis' teary eyes narrowed. "W-WHY, Mom? I d-don't want to be here costing you money. I want to help you."

Her mom grabbed her shoulders. "Alexis, listen, I know those letters look serious, but you're not going to decide something to stupid and irresponsible just like that! You're going to stay here and finish your studies! I am not letting my daughter do something where only one out of ten _boys_ survive basic training!" She then turned her face away in guilt. She shouldn't have said that.

Alexis' stared at her in shock. "Is it because of that?! B-because I'm a girl?" She then remembered seeing those parents signing in their sons at the drafting table with barely any hesitation. Her eyes narrowed. "What, i-if I was a boy, you'd send me, no problem?!"

"Honey, it's not that; I j-just..."

"Your mother didn't mean that, Alexis... It's just-"

"Then _why_?" Alexis demanded to know. "I...I don't do w-well in school. I don't have a lot of f-friends... Why can't I leave it and do this for you?"

"Alexis, we..."

The red-haired girls' eyes closed to contain tears. "I feel different from everyone else...I don't like anything the other girls do, but I don't go along well with the boys, either." She lowered her head and avoided her parent's eyes. "I just... I j-just wanted to... try something else..."

Her parents stared at her for a while pondering on what she said and exchanging looks with one and another, wondering what to say. They'd definitely would not allow their only daughter to do something so reckless and foolish, no matter how genuine her intentions were. Her Mother grabbed her by the hand and sat her down. "Alexis..."

"I just wanted to help..."

"Alexis, look at me, darling..." Alexis tried to lift her head, but only trembled a bit. "Listen, Alexis, we're not letting you join the army, that's final. Darling, do you know that, if... a woman joins the army of Athena, she has to join the Amazon sisterhood?"

Alexis' teary green eyes finally looked up to her mother. "Y-yeah, so what?"

"This means that... you can't become a foot soldier. If you join Sanctuary's army, once you step on your Training Ground you have no choice other than to become a Saint. This doesn't just mean you'll be facing high odds of failure. This also means that the only way out, even after the third year, is a coffin."

This seemed to gain Alexis' attention. "B-but Mom, maybe I could pass, maybe I could become a Saint! Even if the odds are small..."

Her Mom sighed. She knew the correct way to make Alexis forget about this idea, but it was not a pleasant one. "Alexis, when I was young, I had a friend almost at your age who wanted to become a Saint, too. Unlike the rest of the girls of the village, she joined the army even though everyone told her she would just get herself killed. Regardless of that, we kept receiving letters of her telling about how she was still determined to make it through despite how hard her Training Ground turned out to be. Six years later, we got word that she became an Amazon Bronze Saint, with her mask still intact and everything."

Alexis wiped her teary eyes. Where was her Mom getting with all of this? "What about her?"

Her Mom's eyes saddened and her frown deepened. "She kept on sending letters, though more disparately as time passed on. One day, we found out that through her parents she had been depressed, complaining how she couldn't get rid of the mask and how she was having trouble relating with people because of it. She started visiting her parents more and more often and one day... we found out she had been assaulted. Someone in Sanctuary attacked and... raped her."

Alexis widened her eyes, old enough to know what this meant. "She was violated?! By whom?"

"She wouldn't say...Athena knows that the Sisterhood did everything to find out and maybe she would have eventually said, but... a couple of days later she died. She hanged herself in her Training Ground." Her mom finalized. "Alexis, I don't want you not to join the army because you're a girl, but because it is a harsh, ungrateful shot in the dark that rewards you with nothing but misery. Yes, being a woman in this army makes it even worse, but... I don't want to risk having my daughter go through all of that, specially with Holy War coming within our lifetime." Her Mom's eyes started welling up.

Alexis sat there silently, trying to think of an answer. She could feel her parents were just trying to protect her, but an urge to return that favor just drove her to try to fight back. Unfortunately, the devastated look in her Mom's eyes completely disarmed her. "M-mom, what s-should I do?"

She hugged Alexis tightly. "Listen, Alexis, I know that... you don't get along with others because you're always so... so serious and hard working but,... whatever you do in your life... whomever you finally choose as your friends and family, I want you to know that we're proud of you and we love you, okay? Just don't ask something that stupid ever again..."

Alexis' nodded calmly. "O-okay, mom." She then rested her face on her mom's shoulder.

However, all of a sudden, a loud, thunderous sound of an explosion and something heavy and wooden crashing down to the ground was heard together with an earth shake that sent all three of them into full alert and stumbling. "What was that?!" her Mom wondered out loud.

All three of them stood very still and listened quietly. Another blast was heard followed by several screams and the sound of metal boots rushing around at the distance. Echoing roars and shouts were also heard.

The family's faces went pale.

Alexis' father jumped into action "Go to the backrooms! I'll go see what's happening!" he shouted as he headed towards the front door. He saw his wife and daughter nodding and heading away. He grabbed the door's handle and opened it. His whole body froze in place.

Before the man, a scenario of chaos enfolded itself as several villagers ran screaming across their street towards the south exit of the village's precinct so as to escape the mad rampage of Skeleton soldiers punching, slashing, kicking and shooting people down with their crossbows. He saw several of his friends and coworkers being slayed left and right as they desperately attempted to outrun the attackers.

His mouth opened in horror and his eyes instantly looked for any soldier on their side, only to find the few in the area being slowly isolated and pinned down into outnumbered fights by Hades' men. The cruel sound of metal clashing with metal and tearing flash was escalating. Smoke and fire was seen from the distance and explosions occurred every now and then on the north side, where the attack began.

Before him also stood a tall man clad in full body armor shaped after a skeleton with eyes shadowed by his helmet and teeth bare in rage. His protection was splashed with blood all over and so was the cruel, curved edge of the battle scythe he held as he was just finishing to remove it from a fallen villager. The soldier turned to him and rushed at him at the speed of sound.

"D-_DAD_!" Alexis screamed to the top of her lungs, trying in vain to get her father to move. The Skeleton Soldier stopped before her father and roared in anger. Time slowed down for the teenage girl as she saw the cruel, dark warrior swing around his scythe and bringing it down on her father, slashing him straight across the torso. Blood sprayed out from his chest and mouth before his entire upper body collapsed upon the red pool that had formed.

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**Northern entrance of Arcadia...**

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Lance, now armored with his Pegasus Cloth, rushed through the wooden palisade's destroyed gate, past the burning houses and dead soldiers and villagers. He came across a group of Skeleton soldiers serving as a rear division as they finished tearing down the houses their vanguard had attacked and finishing off the survivors. His eyes narrowed and burned with hateful fire as he caught sight of them cutting down the villagers. They also noticed and turned to him.

Lance's teeth gritted and his fist tightened. This would not be easy. Overconfident as they were due to their zeal and 'chosen people' complex, Hades' foot soldiers were tougher than Athena's. They also took a sadistic pleasure in torturing their victims, a practice they obviously obtained from serving in Hell and would have no mercy on a Saint like him.

Lance's angry face was interrupted by a sudden puzzled look when he saw the soldiers gritting teeth at him. One of them stepped forward with raised scythe. "Look, a _Saint_! A Saint of Athena!"

Another nodded. "Yes! Another fool. Another sap serving their almighty bitch!" he growled.

"LET'S KILL HIM!" a third one roared before a group of five charge straight at the Bronze Saint.

The Pegasus Saint stood there for a second, confused, but he quickly snapped out of it when the first one engage him with a diagonal scythe swing and an angry roar. He charged his cosmos into his gauntlets and forearm guards and bashed the enemy's edge so as to block it before crashing his fists on the attacker's ribs, stunning him. Lance, quickly kicked him away, but two others rushed at him with spear thrusts which he dodge by sidestepping. He instantly riposted by punching one's face, jumping and delivering a devastating kick to the other which sent him flying against a ruined house.

The other four recovered their momentum and all charged at him with a roar. Once more, Lance was taken aback by their strange attitude but pulled himself together fast enough to dodge another scythe swing, catching a swordsman grip and then breaking it with a sudden twist, parrying the spears and stepping back before suddenly vanishing into thin air. The swordsman screamed in pain and the others stood confused for an instant before a round of thunderous supersonic blows crashed all over their armors, shattering them to pieces before a second round of fewer, heavier attacks knocked them out.

As soon as Lance reappeared landing on the floor nearby, he already had the rest of the mob charging straight at him. He growled in frustration, tensed both hands into chop stances and burned his white cosmos. "**Pegasus BLADE!**" His arms, from the tip of his tense fingers to the elbow, were suddenly engulfed in a white, flaming aura which then condensed into a skin-deep layer of white light, transforming his limbs into a set of twin cosmos sword blades.

Lance dashed forward towards his attackers and slashed straight across his assailant's scythe, splitting it by the shaft, before blocking an arm swing and following it with a slash across the foe's side. Several weapons attacked from all around but he kept on parrying, blocking and counter slashing as best as he could. A particularly daring foe managed to force him into a cross parry with downwards slash before kicking Lance's chest.

The Bronze Saint stumbled backwards with this before being attacked several times on the back by a foe he had managed to disarm, flooring Lance who then found himself laying down in a middle of a group of enemies trying to kill him.

He instantly rolled to the side to dodge several weapon stabs and stomps before executing a rolling kick that tripped a couple of his foes. He tried to get up, but the pressure the Skeleton soldiers were putting on him only allowed him to get on his knee before he had to start blocking again.

"_Damn it!_" he thought as he felt himself slowly being pinned down. He could take on a Silver Saint, but Skeleton Soldiers were so tough and relentless that they were capable of just keep on the pressure until the foe cracked, even if several times stronger than any of them. When his frustration hit the limit, he made his white aura explode before launching himself at them in a spinning slash with his Blade, cutting down several of them while stunning and startling the rest.

He took the chance to switch tactics. "**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST**!" His cosmos exploded once more before he suddenly struck a tougher foe in the chest with a bullet-like punch in an all out charge. He stomped the ground to let the guy fly before twisting himself so as to switch momentum to the others. Repeating this tactic while carefully choosing targets allowed him to execute a powerful flurry of Charge Fists at each opponent down to the last one, finally and instantly knocking down the entire group at the expense of a lot more cosmos than he initially intended to spend on them.

The last one screamed and stepped back before the white blur that was Pegasus bashed on his face as hard as he could, shattering his helmet and breaking his neck. Lance landed on the floor with a heavy pant and surrounded by fallen foes. His white gauntlets burned with cosmos and were dripping blood.

He cursed their resilience but then wondered what was going on. "What was up with these guys?" he then looked up to the black sky. "And what is with this jamming?! One of them must be causing this. I have to find him." He had already sent Shinta to fetch help, but the situation seemed more serious than he initially pictured. Hopefully, the Pope would get off his ass and actually send a Gold Saint but that would be wishing too much.

Lance then left the area, heading towards the center of the village were the bulk of the enemy was at. Several slashed down villagers, militia and guards were among the wreck, but most were dead and the rest was unconscious or unable to get up.

One particular victim caught his eye. The captain of the guards, distinguished by his heavier set of armor, lied on the floor dead, with claw and bite marks as if he had been attacked by a pack of animals. Lance's eyes, experienced from his time in Mount Olympus, instantly recognized it as the result of a wolf pack attack. "Who attacked this guy?" he wondered.

Suddenly, another fiery explosion was heard at the distance. Lance's eyes briefly turned to the eruption of orange fire cosmos at the other end of the village and deduced that the Specter leading the attack was probably there. Before he turned directions towards it, he followed nearby screams and entered a neighborhood where the skeleton soldiers were slaughtering several people he could still save. There was so much going on all around Arcadia that the Pegasus barely knew who he should turn to help first. His first instinct had been that of rushing after the leader, but if there was weaker foes over there he could quickly take out, he would save a lot more lives in less time.

He burned his cosmos to the max and rushed into the mayhem of dark armors and victims, taking down one enemy after the other as fast as he could. He did not even stop to help the victims up, who just rushed towards the southern exit without even as much as looking at Pegasus as soon as they found themselves saved. Lance's red eyes turned towards another scream far off from one of the houses and was treated to the sight of a Skeleton Soldier cutting down an old miner at a house before slowly entering inside.

Lance turned back toward the leader and then the house. Does he go after the leader, or is it possible that the explosions were being caused by someone else? He swore that through the chaos, he heard a very faint scream of a girl after that miner was killed.

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The teary-eyed, terrified daughter was pulled back by her mother as the black-clad soldier of Hades stepped over her father's corpse with a bloody scythe in hand while baring sharp teeth in his face. Her mouth was agape in horror and she found herself tripping on her back with her mother as the enraged man enclosed on them.

He kicked away the furniture in his path. "You're scared of me?! Why? You should be thanking me! I'm saving you from this disgrace of a life." he protested, as if he really was doing them some sort of unwanted favor.

"STAY AWAY!" the mother screamed as she hugged Alexis tightly. "G-Get away from us, you murderer!"

"This pathetic, miserable life just waiting to be snuffed away at some God's whim. You think you'd live good lives if it weren't for me? Think again! The only thing you look forward to is to be abused and forgotten by Sanctuary or trampled underfoot by some stupid, fucking war! But don't worry!" He brandished his scythe. "I'll _save_ you from that!" He then roared and swung down his weapon.

Alexis screamed and crawled back as much as she could, her teary, green eyes wide open in terror. She raised her hands in an attempt to defend herself, expecting they wouldn't do much against his large metal weapon.

"**BLADE!**"

A white gauntlet grip suddenly caught the man's wrist to stop his attack from behind before the soldier's chest suddenly exploded into white, piercing light in the shape of a sharp sword edge. A scream and a burst of blood filled the house and the soldier fell to his knees, revealing to Alexis a tall, red-eyed teen just over her age armored with a white horse themed Cloth. The Bronze Saint let go of the Skeleton Soldier's wrist, tossing him to the ground after the fatal blow.

Both mother and daughter gagged and stared at the sight of their savior for a bit. The red eyed youth turned to them. "Stay inside! There are still too many!" he ordered.

The mother shakily nodded in obedience. Alexis, who had never seen a Saint in her life before, kept staring at the guy, even forgetting for a small bit the situation they were in. Her green eyes turned to the fallen man at their door. "D-dad! DAD!" She tried to get up and go to him, but her mother hugged her to stop her. "N-no-o!"

The panting Lance stared at the sight of the teary girl for a while, his anger fueled by the sheer sadness in front of him. "Fucking murderers! They'll pay for this! They'll pay for ALL of this!" Deciding to hunt down each and every one of the miserable bastards behind the attack, he walked outside with a purpose and launched himself at the enemy soldiers raiding the streets.

Alexis felt her eyes burst into tears against her mother's shoulder as the sound of Bronze armored fists was heard bursting through armor and breaking bones outside. Her equally teary mother tried to whisper her words of comfort, but her trembling voice did little the calm herself, let alone her daughter. They slowly walked over to the father and stared at his corpse, but the sight of the horrible wound and all the blood made them break down even worse.

Alexis touched her dad's face. "N-no, dad, NO!" she sobbed.

"I-It's okay, Alexis, don't c-cry." her mother whispered before reaching for a fallen tablecloth and laying a sheet on top of her husband. "It's g-going to be alright, darling. I'm here for you."

She could barely listen to her mother's words. Her teeth gritted in sadness and frustration. How could this have happened? One second they were arguing over her future and the other this horrible, chaotic hell was set upon them. Her small cosmos burned with her anger as she screamed and punched the wooden floor, only barely cracking through it.

Amidst the tears and wailing, Alexis caught sight of the enraged Saint trying to avenge them by killing all the Skeleton Soldiers outside. The Pegasus Saint's elbow blow hit one's throat before countering a blocked scythe with a powerful side kick, instantly killing the two soldiers. There was still so many cornering him though and they were so strong. The Bronze Saint found himself stepping back a bit as over a dozen foes started gathering in front of him.

It was then that Alexis truly caught sight of the chaos the peaceful village of Arcadia had been thrown into. The dirt roads were stained red with murdered villagers, several buildings were ruin or encased in fire. The black smoke rising from the streets covered the sky even further and occasional fire explosions were seen at the distance together with small earth tremors. It was like their town had been thrown into hell by Hades.

The red-haired girl then saw on top of one of the roofs a man crawling around and taking position so as to face down on the street. He was wielding a crossbow and aimed it at the Bronze Saint. "Watch out! On the roof!"

Lance's red eyes instantly detected the sniper shooting a bolt at him. He side-stepped instinctively, narrowly avoiding an arrow that would have skewered his leg. The Skeleton mob in front of him then charge all at once to take advantage of his distraction. He narrowed his fierce red eyes. The first thing he did was dash straight ahead at them so as to take one out with a powerful side kick to the head, quickly jump over him and drop kick another so hard it shot the foe straight at a damage support wall of the burning house the sniper stood on.

The house crashed down, forcing the sniper to jump down to join the fight. The Pegasus Saint, however, made his white aura exploded by burning his cosmos to the max and in the next disappeared so as to deliver a multitude of Mach Five blows that shattered the armors of the mob and killed them.

Lance panted heavily as the many enemies fell to the floor around him with grunts of pain, exhaustion and death. His aura extinguished itself and his eyes looked around. He noticed, with a sting of failure in his conscience, that he had only managed to save those two women in the house.

He then grabbed his side when the searing pain of a scythe cut started burning. "_D-damn it! Taking out all those guys helping Kastiel was so easy... But Hades' men are just something els__e__._" He turned to the direction from where he had seen the earlier fire explosions. "_It has stopped?_" he wondered. Had the Specters killed everyone else? He turned to the two women. They both had their faces reddened and marked by tears. The red-haired teen, in particular, had quite the traumatized look on her face, but who could blame her since she had just seen her dad be cut down in two by a madman?

The whole street was burning. They wouldn't be safe in their house if the fires kept spreading. Feeling the intense heat all around him and his adrenaline flowing from all the hard fighting, Lance grabbed his temples in dizziness and couldn't help but be reminded of Death Queen Island.

"You... You're not safe here, anymore. The north side of the village is cleared. You should be able to flee through there now." he said. Normally, he had a tough time talking to women, specially young girls about his age. He would stutter and find it difficult to know what to say. The seriousness of the situation, though, helped him override that weakness. The young girl seemed to awaken with this. Her mother started pulling for her and telling her to obey the Saint, but the traumatized teenage villager just seemed to be somewhere else. "GO!" Lance yelled.

Alexis snapped out of it. She started hearing her mother's shouts again. "C-come on, Alexis, let's go!" the older woman screamed.

Lance's red eyes stared at her until she started moving away, though she kept glancing back at the scene of chaos around her burning house. The Pegasus Saint wondered if she was going to be okay.

"What did you do to my men?!" someone asked behind him.

Lance's senses went into full alert and his Bronze Cloth's cosmos exploded in intensity so as to protect it's owner. Lance turned around. He and the two villagers froze in place as they found themselves being glared down by a man standing on top of one of the roofs, amidst the flames. He was armored with the Bennu Surplice, a dark-colored, full body winged armor complete with pointy, segmented double sets of shoulder and thigh guards, elegant forearm covers with spike elbow extensions, a tall neck guard and a chest protections consisted of many overlaying shaped like pairs of wings.

His hair was white despite his young looks and his eyes were green and narrowed at the Saint with the utmost spite and rage. The Specter gritted teeth at the sight of all the fallen Skeleton Soldiers around Pegasus. Leaping down from his porch, his cosmos revealed itself in the form of a flaring aura of orange fire waves erupting from beneath his feet and dancing all around him.

Lance locked eyes with him. "You're the leader, aren't you!?"

Bennu nodded. "That's right. I am Bennu Yakos, servant of the Pride Star!" he introduced himself. "I'll ask you one more time! Did you kill my men?"

Lance raised a brow. "_What, Pride Star? That's not the star of the Bennu Surplice._" he recalled. If he had it right, Yakos should introduce himself as the Celestial Star of Violence. Lance overlooked the minor detail, though. He raised his knuckles, partly to prepare himself and partly to show off the Skeleton Soldier blood on them. "What do you think?!"

There was a brief instance where Lance was able to see Yakos stare at him even harder before the Specter suddenly blitzed forward. The tired Pegasus barely had time to step back before someone covered in fire cosmos grabbed him by the collar raised him and crashed a metal fist on his face so hard the Saint was shot across the street and crashing against wooden wreck of a former house.

Yakos marched towards the Saint, barely able to contain his rage. He picked up the insolent punk by the throat and raised him high in the air. "I'll snap your fucking neck!"

Lance gagged in pain and suffocation. He grabbed Yakos wrists and tried to punch it off, but the Surplice was powerful and seemed to absorb most of his force. For some reason, though, Lance suddenly felt Yakos' grip alleviating slightly. He looked down on the Specter and saw him stare back, confused by something.

Yakos blinked. "_His eyes... are just like-_" Lance's foot suddenly exploded on his chest, stunning him and freeing the white-armored Saint. Yakos coughed and stepped back, his confusion gone and replaced with increased rage. "Fucking murderer! I'll make you pay!"

"MURDERER?!" Lance shouted. "Have you looked at what you and your men have done today?! This whole village is burning... everyone here is dead because of _you_! First Ismara and now this, and you have the nerve to call me that!?"

Yakos seemed to hesitate. "...Yes, murderer! You're all murderers, you Saints, and so are we!"

It was Lance's turn to stare at him in confusion. "What? What the fuck are you talking about?!"

"I can't end it! I can't do anything about it... About these pitiful existences!" Yakos complained, looking down on his trembling hands which then closed tightly in anger. "I was promised something else. I was promised something truthful and with a happy ending. But I was lied to! I'm not destined for anything! I'm just...some fucking _doll_! But if I can't change them,... if I can't give new meaning to our lives, then I'll just end them!" He suddenly took a pose and his cosmos started charging up.

The red-eyed youth sweated nervously as he was presented with an aura of orange energy around Yakos that slowly inflated and danced more viciously. Yakos roared out loud to the skies and his cosmos burned to the max, darkening the area around them. The image of a massive, dark-feathered bird then showed up behind the Specter, screeching loudly.

Lance stared at the bird, reminiscing a scene from his past where, somewhere else, some time ago, he was in a hellish place filled with fire just like the burning Arcadia and someone filled with hate and spite was charging an attack just like Yakos' at him.

He looked over his shoulder and saw the two villagers behind him. "_They're still here. I have to save them._" The massive bird in front of him opened up its wings and screeched even more, paralyzing the two civilians with fear.

The Specter's green eyes glowed in accordance with the bird's. His right hand then raised itself and gathered all the cosmos of his aura around it before condensing it into a small, sun-like sphere of fire. Yakos glared right into the Saint's eyes. "I'll burn you all into ash! **CORONA BLAST**!" He then threw his fist forward, shooting the small sphere which then exploded into a size much larger than Lance.

The Pegasus Saint widened his eyes at the terrifying concentration of cosmos in front of him. Being no amateur at facing fire, though, he instantly threw both his hands forward. "**PEGASUS BARRIER**!" His palms projected the large, transparent layer of cosmos in front of him. He kept burning his cosmos until it reached the appropriate size and then braced himself for the impact.

The enormous sun blast crashed with the barrier and exploded once more into an uncontrollable outburst of flames. Lance watched as the Barrier did its job of dispersing the energy of the unfocused attack along it's spherical surface and away from the three of them, blasting and burning through everything around them but still successfully protecting them. Lance awaited patiently for the attack to wear off completely.

However, the exploding burst of flames did not seem to end. In fact, Lance had to widen his eyes as the flames started receding back into the original sphere, which then started grinding against the barrier. Small, bright cracks started showing up all around the protective field. Lance raised his hands and started projecting more cosmos, determined to protect the two behind him.

"It's no use! DIE!" Yakos screamed before his fire cosmos aura increased in size, pushing his attack further.

Lance gritted teeth as he felt the added pressure of Yakos' assault. The Corona Blast started concentrating further at the same time it was fed more power. Lance's stretched arms started trembling and his feet dragging back. "_NO!_" he yelled to himself. "_This is not just about me! I'm protecting someone now! I can't fail!_" He then burned his cosmos to his max.

Yakos watched, frustrated, as the Saint grew brighter and as the Barrier's cracks started receding.

"_You're doing it, Lance!_" The Pegasus Cloth suddenly cheered for him. "_Come on, just a bit more. I'll help you._"

Lance looked down on his gauntlets and watched, amazed, as Pegasus started shining even further, bringing out energy he had no idea the armor had. It was with relief and further amazement that he saw the cracks on his Barrier disappearing and the pressure on him relieving. "_Pegasus, you... you're helping me?_" He saw the parts of the armor tremble, as if Pegasus itself was trying his best to help its owner. He looked over his shoulder. The two civilians were fine, but the three of them were trapped by the attack. He had to push it back.

Yakos' cosmos exploded to its maximum intensity. "It's over!" he yelled.

Lance suddenly felt a huge burst of strength suddenly push against his barrier. The cracks appeared all over again, this time bigger and multiplying rapidly. "What? NO!" he screamed, realizing his technique was failing. He pressed on, trying to fortify it with his cosmos, but his fingers started feeling numb and his vision was trembling. "N-no, I won't give up."

Alexis felt herself being hugged once more by her mother and pulled back, but they were pushed against the ruins of a house and had nowhere to go. She saw the Saint suddenly fall to his knee and his stretched arms shake. "_I-Is this it?_" she wondered. "_Are we going to die?"_

Lance tried to stand back up, but his cosmos was starting to failing. His concentration was waning and he felt like suddenly had a huge weight on his shoulders. It was then that he realized it was his armor. "N-no! I c-can't..." The barrier in front of him was practically filled with bright lines of damage. He felt like he was holding a piece of glass in front of him that would break at any moment. "I WON'T LET YOU KILL THEM!" he shouted. His Barrier then shattered completely and the Saint leaped backwards and tackled them both to the ground so as to take the attack.

Alexis felt the Corona Blast then run them over and exploded one final time into a flash of burning light right on top of them. All she could hear was the sound of roaring flames with the weight of the Saint and the sensation of crashing through wooden ruins of a house which then fell right on top of them.

Everything after that was filled with darkness and heat.

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Yakos lowered his hand after the burning cosmos around it doused and stared at the burning wreckage before him. The explosion of Corona Blast had blinded him for a moment, but the sight of the fallen Pegasus Saint on top of the two other motionless women was proof that his attack had landed a hit. He walked over to Pegasus and kicked him harshly to see if he would react.

There was no response.

Pleased with one less Saint in the world, he hurried to go help Kairos speed up the work before Black Raven ended, intent on satiating his rage with more blood.

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The weight of fallen wood beams was on his back and the sound of burning and heat of flames was all around him. The fallen Bronze Saint struggled to open his red eyes. He was lying on top of rubble and everything was shaking. He was definitely bleeding from somewhere and little metal white splinters kept falling down from the cracks of his Cloth. He grabbed the small plate that protected the left side of his chest and felt it to be half shattered. "W-what happened?" he wondered.

"...M-mom?" someone asked in front of him. Lance looked up and was treated to the sight of the two women he had tackled down. The young, red-haired girl covered in soot seemed to be crawling on the floor towards her mother, who laid on the floor with half a house on top of her, bleeding from her mouth and with lifeless arms stretching on the ground. Alexis grabbed her hands and felt them cold. Her forehead fell on the ground in defeat. "_N-no,_ m-mom! MOM!"

Lance stared at her and felt memories rushing back into his mind of his fight with Bennu Yakos, recalling how he had tried to protect the two civilians with his Barrier. However, despite giving his all and even getting help from his Cloth, Yakos overpowered both Saint and Cloth. Lance had then tried to tackled them down the floor in order to take the bulk of the blast in a desperate attempt to save the lives of the two villagers.

He had failed.

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter:** Bond Forged by Fire, part 3 of 3

**Release Date:** August 17th

**Description:** Shinta arrives at the ruined village of Arcadia together with Saint Cynthia to save the surviving villagers and to look for Lance. However, there is no sign of the Pegasus Saint and the Specters are still thirsty for blood.


	8. 1A: Bonds Forged By Fire Part 3 of 3

**N****otable OCs up until**** now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; MMC; Sanctuary Forts, Outposts and Villages

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests

_Please enjoy and review._

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Lance trembled in horror as he watched Alexis cry and wail her heart out while holding on to her mother's hand. The Saint's heart wrenched and almost split in two as he realized the enormous failure he had committed. "N-no!" He yelled out, bashing his fist on the floor. "NO! HOW?! How could I have f-fucked up like this?!" His hands tightened harshly. "H-how?!"

"_It's because you're weak._" someone said. "_It's because you didn't do what was instinctive to you._"

Lance did not dare to look up to the source of the sound. "S-shut up!"

A foot stepped nearby him. The person crouched down and spoke to his ear. "_It's because you didn't 'hate'!_"

"SHUT UP!" Lance swiped his arm around to attack the person, who just seemed to drift away so as to dodge. Lance found himself standing up in darkness. "Get away from me, you bastard! GO AWAY!"

The scarred, masked man laughed. His mask was unmoving but it's grinning teeth made up for it. "You failed because you weren't strong enough. You weren't strong enough because you didn't hate! HAHAHAHA!"

Lance screamed at the top of his lungs and fired a sudden blast of cosmos at the masked man, who just faded away into the darkness once struck. "I'm not like you! I'LL NEVER BE LIKE YOU! _MURDERER_!"

"MURDERER! HE MURDERED HIM!" a crowd suddenly shouted around him.

Lance gasped and widened his eyes. He was suddenly standing in the middle of a crowd of shadows. The were featureless specters with eyes of bright light and all pointing fingers of accusation at him. "W-what? Where am I? What is this?"

The crowd rushed at him, grabbing the Saint. "Murderer! Murderer, murderer, MURDERER!" they shouted in unison.

Lance felt the strange mob trying to pull him apart from all directions "Get off me!" he screamed. His white aura started burning around his beat up body and the Saint started struggling "NO! I didn't do anything! GET OFF ME!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. His body tensed up and his cosmos suddenly exploded into a bonfire in all directions which consumed the crowd, freeing the Saint and filling the darkness with light, roaring of flames and screams of fear and pain. Lance's red eyes watched in horror as the fire wave he unleashed blasted the shadows into nothingness, leaving behind the bodies of children that then fell to their backs, their corpses blackened by the flames.

Lance trembled in shock, his armor still covered in small threads of fire cosmos, as he found himself in the midst of a death scenario, blackened corpses surrounding him. He fell to his shaking knees and laid down his hands. He stuttered in horror. "N-no! No, this isn't... I didn't want this..." Flames still burned around him amongst the corpses. These fires started moving around, slowly closing in on the Saint. "...I didn't want to kill anyone..."

The man fires formed a circle around him. The one right in front of him blazed upwards, increasing its size as if to confront him. "You're wrong. If you didn't want to kill, you wouldn't have."

Lance didn't bother to look up at the flame. He could feel the red glare he would so easily recognize from past dreams look down on him. He just wanted to wake up from that nightmare. "L-leave me alone!" he pleaded. "What are you?! Why won't you leave me alone?"

"I am your anger. I am your hate."

Lance shook his head. "Y-you're a fucking nightmare!"

The flame was unmoved. "Don't you want to make things right? Don't you want to be stronger? Aren't you angry? Aren't you full of hate in your heart? As long as you are, I will _never_ leave you be!" it reasoned. "Your Cloth is broken and weak, barely still alive. Despite having beaten Kastiel, you still couldn't stop what happened in Death Queen Island later on and you couldn't stop that insane Specter from killing the villagers and the girl's parents, either. In the meantime, Sanctuary will blame you for this failure and for sins you never committed. Isn't that unfair? Isn't that something you deserve to fight against? You are beaten, bloody and exhausted... Don't you want to make use of your true strength? Don't you wish you could just satiate your anger?"

Lance's teeth gritted. He looked down on his armored palms, just wishing he could do something, just wishing he could just somehow overcome the hell the Specters had thrown him and that village into. He wished he could just fix his failure. "Y-yes!" The fire pounced on him, setting his limbs and chest on fire. "Why? Why am I not stronger?" The heat of the flames penetrated his heart. The Saint stood up in the darkness and felt his core shooting fire through his veins, refilling him with energy. "I should be stronger! I should be stronger than all these MURDEROUS BASTARDS!"

His whole body trembled in anger. The sensation of his skin burning from Corona Blast was replaced by a different fire, one that didn't hurt him and came from his heart. "_You 'are' stronger than them!_" the fire's voice whispered in his mind. "_Now go kill them all!_"

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A loud gasp escaped his mouth and the Pegasus Bronze Saint's red eyes opened up. They blinked repeatedly, seeing a warm, blurred world lightened by many flaring lights. HE groaned in pain, realizing he had a heavy weight on top of him of wooden planks and broken objects.

He was still in Arcadia, still trapped beneath burning beams that once supported a house. As he felt his memories rushing back once more, a new anger filled his heart. His eyes narrowed intensely and his left hand tightened harshly around a small rock it was laying on amidst the rubble. White cosmos suddenly burned intensely around the fingers, causing them to grind harshly on the object. The Saint roared and the cosmos suddenly brightened up, turning into a burning orange that set the hand on fire with new power. There was a loud, sudden sound of stone crumbling and the rock was crushed into dust.

He tried to move, but couldn't get up. The Saint focused harder and felt the energy from his dream re-shooting itself into his veins, setting his cosmos on fire. A roar and a bright burst of energy followed from his body, destroying the rubble on top of him and allowing him to stand back up. He felt his fingers digging into his palms in anger and a loud shout went out his throat. The Saint stared at the sky as his scream echoed, panting loudly as he got a hold of himself.

"_L-Lance, you're a-alive!_" Pegasus celebrated. It's mental voice sounded weak, probably due to the damage it suffered.

There was a moment in which the youth was lost in anger, but the Saint nodded. He watched the small flame-like cosmos still burning around his body as his Element finally awoke. "Fire? What's going on?"

"_You've awoken your element...This is a miracle!_" Pegasus explained. The relief in his voice was apparent. "_That Specter's attack must have pushed you to your limits. But, fire is your element? Lance... does this mean..._"

Pegasus's expression grew grim, reminded of Death Queen Island. "I thought that, if I'd ever awaken it, it would be darkness, but..." He shook his head. His element being fire didn't mean a thing! It didn't make Lance like _him_ any bit more. "No, I don't want to think about it. It's just a coincidence!" he told himself.

"_Lance... I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. If I had been stronger..._" the Pegasus Cloth lamented. "_If I wasn't such a weak cloth you wouldn't have almost been killed..._"

Lance ignored the Cloth's lamenting. "I... I'm not done yet! This isn't over!" The Bronze Saint then stepped away from the fires and destruction so as to go confront the man who caused this all.

However, he heard sobbing on the floor and he caught sight of the red-haired girl crying on the ground in front of her dead mother. "M-mom, _NO-O-O_!" she wailed. "P-please d-don't die! AA-AAH!"

Lance's lips frowned sadly. He thought he had just been dreaming, but the girl's mother pale, bloody body left little doubt to her death. The older woman seemed truly motionless. The little of her upper body that wasn't covered in rubble didn't seem to be breathing. Lance reached for the girl.

Amidst her uncontrolled sobbing, Alexis suddenly felt armored arms tightening around her and the scene of fire and death she was in just blur away as she was carried at Mach 5 speed to the north exit of the town, from where the Bronze Saint had entered the village. Her reddened, tear-drenched face looked up and saw the tired Bronze Saint looking down on her.

Lance panted, trying to think of what to say. His typical nervousness with girls also started kicking in, but there was no time to lose with that. "I'm... I'm sorry. I was too late...I was too weak!" The Saint rubbed his forehead in guilt. "I promise... I'll try to make this up for you. What's your name?" The girl just stared at him, still in shock and undoubtedly traumatized by losing both her parents and her entire town so suddenly. Lance took a hold of his new cosmos and was able to put out the fire-like energy that still burned around his Cloth. This seemed to make her get off her trance for some reason. "My name is Pegasus Lance. What's yours?" he repeated.

Alexis turned her eyes to the burning village. "I'm... A-Alexis... I..." She covered her face. "M-my parents... N-NO..." She then couldn't help but cry her eyes out.

Lance's eyes softened in sadness. "_If only... if only I had trusted Shinta! If I had let him come with me, we could have saved more people with his chains. What have I done?!_" he thought to himself. His fists then tightened in anger once more. He suddenly punched a tree nearby to let it out, crashing it against the ground. "Stay here, you'll be safe. I'll avenge you. I promise!" Lance then charged his cosmos and rushed inside the village once more. He would make use of his new power and make every last fucking Specter pay with their lives!

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**Chapter 8**

**First Arc**

**Episode 5**

**Bonds Forged by Fire**

**Part 3 of 3**

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**Meanwhile, in Arcadia's southern entrance...**

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The Bronze Saint and the Amazon halted their dash right at the village's entrance and they were immediately struck with grief. The palisade-protected town had long been broken into and the streets were burning.

Cynthia looked up to the many black smokes moving upwards to the clouds while the northern wind carried the scent of blood and burning flesh to their noses. When Shinta had told her about the raiders, she had hoped he was mistaken, naive and inexperienced as he was, but the sight of fire and sound of screams were an awful confirmation. "No, we're too late..." said Cynthia.

Shinta entered and looked into the village's streets "LANCE! Where are you?!" he screamed. "LANCE?!"

The Amazon Silver Saint followed him inside the town. Obviously, there was no answer to Shinta's plight, but the emergency with which he rushed in made her wonder about what was going on between the two Bronze Saints. It was a concern for another time, though, as they had to look for other survivors. "Shinta, we'll run into him later. I'm sure he's fine. Right now, we have to stop this chaos!"

Shinta looked at her with pleading eyes. "B-but... I..." The Andromeda Saint then remembered his training and shook his head. "No, you're right. There's things to do. I'm... I'm sure he's fine. He's very strong..." He then looked away, unsure of himself.

Cynthia noticed this, but her attention was diverted to the screams just ahead. "Come on, let's go!" Both Saints then rushed at the speed of sound to meet the source of the violence.

They had to stop, though, when confronted with the bone-chilling sight of the raiding Skeleton Soldiers finishing off the last few survivors. They were immediately sighted and all the enemies in the area stopped what they were doing.

"Saints!" one soldier screamed.

"Regroup! Don't let them past." The black-armored men then started gathering in a loose formation in front of the Saints, leaving behind the burning houses and street filled with corpses.

A sorrowful, horrified look filled Shinta's face as he contemplated the chaos before him that was the burning village of Arcadia. He ignored the sight of enclosing enemies. "This... This is horrible! How could this have happened?!"

The Amazon besides him nodded. Neither her or much less Shinta had ever been confronted with such a shameless sight of massacre. "You people have a lot to answer for!" warned Cynthia. "Sanctuary will never forgive you for this massacre. Prepare to die!"

The group of Skeleton Soldiers spread out in front of them and raised their spears and scythes. The Cassiopeia Silver Saint was on her guard, but, sensible as she was to Shinta's horror and to the destruction in front of them, she couldn't help but notice the looks of revolt and rage in the enemy's eyes. The two of them had just gotten there, yet the Skeleton Soldiers looked at them as if Shinta and Cynthia had wronged them somehow.

She put her Cloth Box on the ground. One of its sides was engraved with a woman chained to a chair. She grabbed the handle on it. "Stay alert, Shinta, okay?" she asked while pulling the chained handle, causing the box to open up and reveal a blue-colored armor. There was a bright flash of light and the Cloth then disassembled itself into flying pieces that equipped themselves on the Silver Saint.

The Skeleton Soldiers stepped back and got on their guard as they watched the large set of curvilinear triangle pads enclose on their shoulders, her legs be filled up to the thighs in blue metal boots and greaves, a twin pair of gauntlets and forearm guards chain themselves with a twin set of light pink chains and a crown adorned with a four-pointed star place itself on her head. Finally, a gray metal belt enclosed her waist and what seemed like a chain mail skirt of open front rained down from it to little below her knees, which was then topped by a set of four triangular plates also raining from the belt.

The two Andromeda Islanders prepared themselves for battle. The Soldiers noticed that the younger one in pink armor seemed slightly tenser on his pose and more nervous, an indicator of his inexperience. "Saints here already? I thought Yakos went to kill the one who attacked us."

This seemed to get the younger Saint's attention. They ignored it. "Maybe he had friends with him. Who cares?"

Shinta stepped up. "Wait! Where is Lance? What did you do to him?!"

One laughed. "Oh, I don't know! Maybe we killed him!" he taunted. "Knowing Yakos, he probably fried the bastard to a crisp. Wish I could have been there to see that."

"NO! You're lying!" Shinta protested. "Lance would lever lose to people like you!"

Cynthia's mask kept staring at the soldiers, but behind it her eyes turned to the roofs where she spotted several crossbowmen moving amongst the burning buildings. "I, too, doubt that a silver-ranked assault Bronze Saint would let himself fall so easily on your hands. You all look too disorganized, if you ask me." The raised her hands and tightened them around her chains. "But maybe I'll prove it by just showing you the power of someone who fights at Mach five. Go ahead and attack us, if you _dare_!"

Cynthia then expected herself to be ignored, or maybe even laughed at or insulted. Skeleton soldiers were just like that, constantly underestimating Saints due to their confidence in Hades' salvation.

However, their enemies only gritted their teeth harder. Something wasn't right with these raiders.

The spearmen amongst the foot troops slowly took the lead of the enemy enclosing, intending to pin them down. "We don't know who 'Lance' is, kid! And Sanctuary's wrath can go fuck itself for all I care!" one said. "We fear no one! We are the Pride Star's enlightened! WE WILL CHANGE THIS FUCKING WORLD! KILL THEM!" The spearmen then rushed forward.

"**Circle Defense!**" Shinta tossed his defensive chain to the ground, which slithered around the two Saints until it formed a swirling pattern. Several small pinks sparks soared across the links.

"HALT!" one of the enemies said. The advancing ones obeyed, being no fools.

Shinta narrowed his eyes. "You have one chance to surrender. Please lay down your arms and we won't hurt you."

There was laughter amongst the enemy. "Well, look, we have a kind one here!"

"How noble!"

"Did they teach you in your church to be merciful to your enemy, Saint?"

Shinta gritted teeth in frustration. His green eyes kept looking around, trying to spot signs of life among the wreckage. What had happened in that village? What had happened to Lance? "No, they didn't. I just don't want to hurt you!"

Cynthia turned to him. "Shinta, don't say that in combat. They might take advantage-"

"BULLSHIT!" One of them shouted. "You don't want to _hurt_ us? Oh, that is just _cute_! What, do you think you're better than us?! Do you think we're just a bunch of murderers and you're some knight in shining armor?! Go fuck yourself, kid!"

The two Saints blinked in confusion. The Silver Saint in particular was loss at words at the sudden outburst, so much that Shinta had to be the one to answer. "N-no, I mean, I... You destroyed this village!" he recalled. His green eyes forgot all confusion and narrowed in anger. "You destroyed Ismara and then you killed everyone here and I'll bring you to justice for that!"

One Skeleton Soldier laughed. "_Justice_?! In Sanctuary?! Your Pope has murdered more people that all of us put together! You people are more blind than even us!"

Shinta couldn't help but be taken aback. "W-what?! What are you talking about?"

"KILL THEM!"

There was the sudden sound of crossbows flinging. Saint Cynthia suddenly detached her chain mail skirt from her belt. "Shinta, now!"

"**Rolling DEFENSE!**" Shinta's defensive chain suddenly exploded in action, jumping high into the air before raining down around them in twirling fashion, creating a barrier of rapidly moving metal links that blocked the bolts. He then made an opening among them for Saint Cynthia.

The Silver Saint jumped across it into the battle field "**Chain Dance!**" The Amazon wielded the detached skirt like a battle fan, moving it around her body so as to block the few remaining shots before executing a slashing motion that cut through several Skeleton necks. There were muffled screams, hands grabbing opened throats and blood spraying before all the remaining enemies exploded into action.

The crossbowmen tried to reload their bolts while the spear-men and scythe-men engaged the two Saints in a roaring charge. Shinta reacted instantly. "**Nebula Chain**!" His offensive, spear-tipped chain lashed out, piercing through the group, slashing it, lashing it and whipping it around for a while in a mayhem of chains, screams, shocks and broken pieces of armor.

Cynthia dashed through the chaos, easily sensing the pattern of Shinta's attack, until she spotted a Skeleton officer amongst the attacked enemies that was identified by the heavier suit of armor. She re-attached her skirt and launched her offensive chain, which was tipped by a four-pointed star, instantly striking the man's neck and killing him. Once more bolts were fired at her, but she side stepped a shot while lashing out her defensive chain in a movement pattern similar to Rolling defense which blocked the rest of the shots.

Shinta saw the attack on Saint Cynthia and help her. "Go, **Thunder Wave!**" This time, his offensive chain shot towards the roofs, moving up and down in very rigid fashion that made the chain shape a lightning bolt. The crossbowmen initially dodged the attack, but the spear-tipped chain then struck the pillars that supported the buildings they were on, causing them to crash down to the floor, knocking out the falling, screaming men.

Shinta retracted both his chains and turned to Saint Cynthia. She seemed to be doing fine, expertly taking down the last few Skeleton soldiers with lethal blows from her chains. Shinta cringed at this, hoping he would have been able to spare a few, but Saint Cynthia would undoubtedly protest against his pacifism by citing the need to take control of the situation.

He did spot, however, a man in black armor themed after several North American animals approaching the scene. There was a sudden howl, the area darkened, and the man seemingly turned into a pack of ghastly wolves that charged at the Silver Saint's turned back.

Shinta gasped and leaped forward. "Watch out!" he screamed. He pulled up his defensive chain and made it twirl around himself, blocking several slashing and clawing blows that would have been aimed at the Amazon's back.

Cynthia sensed Shinta behind her and realized what just happened. She took down the last grunt and turned to him. The green-haired boy spared her a worried glance. Shinta had just prevented her from being viciously attacked. "Shinta, you saved me."

The young Andromeda Saint, however, was too preoccupied to answer, for he had his senses locked on the approaching Specter.

Wind rushed past the newly-arrived enemy, which Shaman Kairos inhaled deeply, taking in the atmosphere of death and chaos. He could easily sense the violence in the air his men had spread throughout the village and the sorrowful spirits of the departed surrounded him, invisible but not to a heightened sixth sense like his. He looked up to the sky and saw the dark clouds of Black Raven still tightly closed. Soon, his spell would wear off, but they still had plenty of time to make their retreat. He took his hand and beat his drum shield a bit, letting the sound echo around the area. "Do you hear that, Saints?" he asked.

The two Andromeda Islanders stepped back in precaution. "Who are you?! Are you the leader of these raiders?" Cynthia asked.

Kairos ignored them. "That... is the sound of the wailing dead. Today many died. Their spirits are all around them. Tell me, do you feel their suffering?"

Shinta wondered what the man was talking about. He had all the appearance of a witchdoctor he'd see in a Pocahontas book with all the parts of his armor shaped after animal body parts. Still, he could sense danger from him.

Kairos continued. "I would like you to feel it. The suffering, I mean. It would give you... insight." He laid out his hand, as if he was trying to grab something in the air. "I sense... a pure, naive spirit."

Cynthia took a protective stand next to Shinta. What was the Specter trying to do? Was he going to try to manipulate the Andromeda Saint? "Shinta, don't listen to anything he says, okay? Be ready to defend yourself."

Shinta nodded nervously. "R-right." He then addressed the Specter. "Who are you? Why are you doing all of this?"

"My name is Kairos. I'm the one who was given the Shaman Surplice." he explained. Both Shinta and Cynthia then expected him to tell them which Terrestrial or Celestial Star he was, as Specters usually did, but Kairos just went on. "I already told you. I'm trying to provide insight. It's something I used to do in the Underworld to those in the lesser Prisons. I would show them what their fellow sinners suffered in the worse ones and I want you all to share that suffering, too... Share the suffering of the people you failed to protect and of those you slaughter in the name of _Athena_." His purple cosmos then started burning around his body. The area around the battlefield darkened and the Shaman's eyes glowed with bright blue light. "I will teach you the pain of the Specters! **GREY WOLF!**" Once again there was a howl and the man split into several ghastly, spectral wolves which attacked the Saints.

This time, however, both Saints were prepared. Shinta tried to warn Kairos. "Stop! If you don't halt your attack-" The wolves just howled more fiercely as an answer and pounced on them. Shinta pulled for his chains. "You leave me no choice! **Wild Trap**-" Shinta then gasped in horror. "W-wait, what?!"

Before him, accompanying the wolves, were screaming, ghoulish spirits rising from the ground. The young Saint's senses were suddenly invaded by images, sounds and pains of the attacked that occurred in Arcadia. He saw people being dragged from their streets, mercilessly put down by the Specters and Skeleton Soldiers. Fires then filled the darkness Kairos had created earlier, the ghouls grabbed the horrified Saint, wailing in pain, as the wolf's claws came down on him.

"SHINTA! Snap out of it!" someone screamed. Saint Cynthia suddenly threw herself in front of him. "**CHAIN DANCE!**" Her detached skirt was raised into a layer of defensive metal links burning with blue cosmos that took the attacks head on. However, some of the many wolves went around it and struck the two Saints with lightning fast swipes, damaging their armors and sending them screaming to their knees.

The darkness lifted and the bright glow in the Specter's eyes dissipated. He watched his two foes squirm on the ground. "So tell me, Saints, do you now know what has happened here?"

Cynthia and Shinta looked up at the Specter in anger and horror. "Y-you fiend!" Cynthia cursed. "You're using the spirits of the people you've killed?"

It was then that Shinta noticed, indeed, that a strange, cloudy cosmos seemed to be surrounding the Specter. "You didn't think my attack would be so simple, did you? Only fools attack Saints without a plan B. The captain of the militia of this place also thought he could read my attack and now he's dead in a puddle of his own blood, somewhere in the streets in the north. Besides, I used the emotions of the fallen, not their spirits. It is the Andromeda Saint's fault for being so weak-willed." He rested his hand on his drum shield. "I've heard Saints go through worse than hell to sharpen their body and mind in order to obtain a Cloth, yet... I wonder if it's just a rumor after all..."

Cynthia grabbed the spot of her armor that had been sliced by claws. It had pierced a bit and ripped her flesh. She thanked Athena she took the time to send that reinforcement flare, but doubted help would get in time. Seeing how the Specter had been able to damage her Silver Cloth, she turned her worried eyes to her partner's Bronze one. "Shinta, are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. I'm sorry, I should have not fallen into that. You got hurt because of me." he apologized. If Lance had been on his side, he would have definitely seen through the attack. Reminded of the Pegasus Saint, Shinta's eyes welled up as he wondered once more where he was. "_What happened to you, Lance? You said you were going to be fine, that you'd just follow them. Where are you, then?_"

The Specter waved around his circle-topped staff in preparation for his second blow. This one would not be so merciful. He gathered the spirits around himself and then drummed his shield with his staff. His eyes rolled up in ecstasy before turning into bright, blue light once more.

The two Saints once again saw darkness, but this time, rather than a howling, a roar was heard and the faint background image of a Siberian brown bear was seen. The Specter's bare muscles seemed to bulge a bit and his nails grew and sharpened. He opened up his mouth to bare enlarged canines, then leaned forward and launched himself at the Saints. "**B****ROWN**** BEAR**!"

Sensing his opponent to have suddenly become more beast than man, Cynthia, whose Cloths was designed for capture, took the initiative. She first raised her detached chain skirt and with a bit of cosmos caused its links to become rigid, creating a large, round shield. "**Chain Guard!**" She felt many powerful blows being blocked by the metal links before the Specter pounced back to reposition himself. Predicting his intention to go around her protection, she lowered her improvised shield and raised her regular chains. "**Go, Nebula CHAIN!**"

Kairos's heightened senses detected the lashing out of a star-tipped chain whips and instantly, reacted, leaping high above to let the ground he was in shatter with the piercing blow of the Amazon. He landed on a nearby porch, roared loudly and leaped right back towards an exposed side of the Amazon's defenses.

However, the sound of rustling chain was heard behind him and something tightened around his ankle. "Not so fast!" shouted Shinta before pulling the chain he had launched and causing Kairos to smash himself on the floor "**Great Capture!**" Shinta then threw his other chain in twirling motion, allowing it to wrap itself around the trashing Specter, who seemed truly possessed.

Cynthia sighed in relief. The Specter was moving fast for someone mimicking a bear. She probably would have been hit if it were not for Shinta's reflexes. "Nice job, Shinta. We got him!" She then repeated his chain technique so as to secure the Specter's bondage. "_It's a good thing he tried this technique. He was probably counting on the old myth of a Saint being able to stop techniques from working twice so he wanted to use something different. We were only able to get him this time because our Cloths are perfect to take down wild fighting styles, so we better make sure he doesn't escape._" she confided via mental message.

Shinta's green head nodded obediently. He remembered how Master Guardnia had once told him that the Cassiopeia Cloth was designed to capture wild animals used in combat and wondered if they would have it so easy if Kairos had used Grey Wolf again. "_Okay, Saint Cynthia. I won't let him __go__._"

The man kept roaring and trashing around on the floor like a captured animal. Several veins bulged in his body and his movements seemed erratic, almost uncontrolled. Eventually, he started calming down. The bright light in his eyes vanished and they rolled back down while his muscles, nails and teeth returned to normal.

Still, he kept trying to free himself. "L-let go of me, Saints!"

Shinta gasped. "No, don't struggle! You'll-" The green-haired boy was too late and the Andromeda Cloth did not hesitate to zap the man with 10,000 volts of pink-colored electricity. The Specter's mouth burst open in a scream of pain and his fingers and limbs tensed with the current. Not wanting to watch the man suffer, Shinta instantly grabbed his chain. "Andromeda, NO!"

The Cloth stopped the zapping, but tightened her chain's hold on the Specter. "_That will teach you a lesson._" It then turned the tip of its chain to Saint Cassiopeia Cynthia "_D__id I __do__ good, Mother?"__she asked, referring to the Cassiopeia Cloth's mythological relationship with the princess.__"I wanted to fry him a bit more, but Shinta is just dumb and merciful like that. Can you tell him to let me do my thing?_"

Cynthia ignored the pink, sadistic Cloth and stepped on the Specter's neck. "Where are your partners?! And were is Pegasus Lance?"

Kairos gasped for air. "G-Go to hell, Sanctuary cunt!" He let out a scream when the back of the Amazon's boot started popping out a stiletto. He didn't know Amazon Cloths' foot wear could do that. "F-FUCK OFF! I D-DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!"

Cynthia folded her arms, sickened by how easily the man was losing his spiritual bravado of before, and put on a bit more weight on her foot. "I know you're lying."

Shinta saw the Specter grab her foot and gasp more harshly. He grabbed Cynthia's wrist. "NO, don't hurt him!"

Cynthia sighed. She couldn't say she didn't expect this. "_Shinta, I know you usually refrain from this sort of stuff, but we'll find survivors and your partner more easily if we play a bit rough, right?_" she nicely asked. She knew perfectly well that it was just in Shinta's nature to object to violence and that there was no going around that.

Shinta opened his mouth to plead for pacifism, but, deep down, he knew she was right so instead he turned to Kairos. He recalled what happened with the Black Saint Ray in his first mission and made sure to stay alert. "Please answer her question. We don't want to hurt you and we won't if you cooperate."

Kairos coughed a lot, but eventually answered. "Go find them if you like... by now everyone in this village is dead! Just you wait, my comrades will find you and you'll join the sorrowful spirits of this place in the afterlife." His eyes then rolled to the side. "He, he. Why wait for that?! It's good to see you in one piece, Yakos."

Shinta and Cynthia went to full alert mode and stepped away to the side, without letting go of the chain Kairos, to lock their senses on the new arrival. Amidst the burning building wrecks, a man of pale hair and squinting green eyes wearing the winged Bennu Surplice was arriving, carrying in his hand the neck a dead farmer. He calmly entered their street, ignoring all the destruction and looking down on his captured comrade.

After dropping the corpse, he spoke. "Must I do everything myself?"

Kairos rolled to his chest to better look up. "I'm sorry, Yakos, they got me."

Yakos looked around. He saw the fallen Skeleton Soldiers with wounds clearly caused by chain attacks. He then turned to the two from Andromeda Island. "More Saints, huh? Something must have alerted them to our attack. We should have moved out from that base we destroyed more quickly."

"So you're the ones who destroyed Ismara?" Cynthia confronted.

"That's right." Bennu confirmed. "It was easy, too. Your soldiers are lazy and dull. They did not live preoccupied lives despite guarding a border outpost. Even after the attack began, they were so disorganized that half my men breached their walls before the picked up their weapons. I made sure, though, the spent their last minutes fighting with their lives for Sanctuary."

"What took you so long, Yakos?" the Shaman Specter asked.

"I had a run-in with a Bronze Saint that was slaughtering our men up in the north. It's nothing to worry about anymore."

Shinta's jaw dropped. "What did you do with Lance?!" he demanded to know. His green eyes squinted.

Yakos turned to him. "I _killed_ him!"

Shinta stared in horror at the Specter for a while, unsure how to react. "N-no! You're lying!"

Yakos chuckled. "Don't worry, he fell with honor. I burned Pegasus to a crisp along with two women he was protecting, so you could say he gave his life for his duty. That makes you Saints happy, right? You don't mind when your friends die if they do it with a smile on their faces and for your Goddess, right?"

Shinta's teeth gritted in anger and his pink cosmos flared up. He felt his fists tightening and his eyes tear up. "Y-you... You MURDERER!" The chained Shaman Specter sweated nervously, wondering if the Bronze Saint would shock him with his chains. The Bennu Specter, however, was unmoved. "I can't forgive you for this. You both...have killed so many people today! I'll defeat you! I'll prove you're lying by beating you!"

Yakos blitzed forward and the two Saints lost sight of him. Cynthia suddenly felt a powerful impact strike her belly, kicking her away and making her crash into a building. Shinta tried to react, but a scream was forced out of his mouth when his single free chain failed to prevent the fast Specter from rushing straight into close range, catch his neck and lift him above ground.

Yakos narrowed his eyes, tightened his grip on Shinta's neck and stomped the chain that Andromeda was using to bind Shaman, shattering a link of it. "Your friend fought harder than this." he taunted as Kairos took the opportunity to free himself from the chains.

Shinta grabbed Yakos wrists and tried to kick him off. The fierce Specter's armor, however, was more than strong enough to resist the blows. He saw Saint Cynthia getting up from the burning wreck. "Lance...w-would never lose to you, never!"

Yakos growled in irritation. While pondering how painfully he would kill the Saint, he felt something irritating his gripping hand. Yakos brought the Saint closer a bit and squinted. It was then that he noticed that there was what seemed to be a metal chain around Shinta's neck. Sensing something strange, Yakos reached inside Shinta's metal collar and pulled it out.

The Bennu Specter widened his eyes. "This pendant... where did you get that?!"

Shinta's pink cosmos exploded all of a sudden to a shocking height and a sudden kick burst in his chest, shattering the superficial layers of his segmented breastplate and striking the Specter hard enough to force him to let go of Andromeda. Yakos screamed and coughed in pain before flapping his wings, allowing him to gain enough distance to dodge Shinta's following chain swipe.

He landed on the floor, touched his pained chest and confronted the young boy. "Y-your cosmos!"

The Specter saw Shinta panting and with an offensive chain, but his pink energy aura burned around him with a scary thickness. The green-haired boy quickly pulled his precious pendant inside his collar. "You shouldn't have done that."

While a fight broke out between Kairos and the Cassiopeia Silver Saint, Yakos wondered if the Saint was talking about him grabbing his necklace or about all the murdering he had done that day. "You're special, aren't you?"

"Why did you do all of this?!" Shinta demanded to know. "Why did you attack Ismara and Arcadia? Why did you hurt and killed and destroyed so much today? What have we ever done to you?"

The Bennu Specter didn't seem the least moved. "We're enemies and I was angry."

"Angry?! Over what?!" Andromeda demanded to know.

"Empty promises." Yakos just said. "What do you think we're doing here, Saint? Tell me, do you think Hades even knows I'm here?"

Shinta blinked. He heard the sound of Saint Cynthia battling Kairos and was eager to join her, but he could not afford to turn his back on the Specter in front of him. "H-he doesn't? But-"

Bennu's wings suddenly raised themselves and his purple cosmos burned. "You know something, Andromeda? Seeing that pendant on you has suddenly make me really want your blood. I'll satiate all my anger with your life. How's that?" he offered.

At first, Shinta widened this eyes with this sudden offer, wondering if the Specter was serious. "You'd leave if I let you kill me? I-" There was a sudden scream behind him. Shinta glanced over his shoulder and saw the Amazon fall to her back, grabbing a sliced arm and hurt stomach. "Saint Cynthia!"

Yakos raised his hand, which was then immersed in fire cosmos. "Lay down your arms and offer your head, Saint. If you do that, me, Kairos and the rest of our men will return to Pandora, no strings attached. I give you my word." he enticed.

He then saw Shinta narrow his eyes in suspicion. "Why should I listen to you?"

The Specter smirked, sensing his offer got to the Saint somehow. "It's better than letting me kill you both and go on with my rampage, isn't it? What's it going to be?"

Shinta's teeth clenched. He felt his pacifism and self-sacrificial instinct instantly considering the Specter's sadistic choice. If he accepted the Specter's demand, he'd selflessly prevent the loss of more lives. But Lance wouldn't do something like that. He would tell him that the two Specters were just lying. He saw Saint Cynthia recover a bit and getting back on her feet, but still looking hurt and at disadvantage. Shinta pondered his choices.

His pink cosmos burned brightly and he pulled his remaining chain upwards. "**NEBULA CHAIN!**" His dark-armored foe exploded into action, rolling to the side to dodge the chain swipe before flapping his wings to take flight high in the air. "I won't trust you! If I give up my life like that, my Master, Nissan and Saint Cynthia would never forgive me and you'd just keep on killing people. I said I would stop you and I intend to do that. "Go, **Nebula CHAIN**!"

The Specter's green eyes read the chain's movement and flew around to dodge the whiplash. The Bronze Saint kept on feeding his attack with cosmos, making the chain resume its assault on the winged man who just kept using his speed and flight to dodge the blows. "DIE, FOOL!" He then dodged one final swipe before thrusting his hand at the Saint, shooting an arrow-shaped fire blast at the boy's heart.

Shinta side-stepped and felt the attack shoot through his chestplate's side, burning his skin and exploding on the ground behind him. He screamed, feeling himself lifted into the air before crashing down on the ground. He coughed, but maintained his focus, quickly rolling to the side to give his arm space to swing his chain. "T-take this! **Nebula Chain**!"

The airborne Specter growled. "Again?! His eyes, however, widened when the chain shot forward at him with unexpected speed, seemingly splitting into many pouncing metal chains that caught him by surprise. The Specter raised his arms to protect himself.

There were several powerful impacts across the surface of his Surplice and many spots of his armor being sharply grazed by electrified metal links. He screamed in pain and was knocked back.

Shinta got up on his knee and twisted his wrist so as to tense the chain. "Now, **THUNDER WAVE!**"

The Specter flapped his wings to stop himself in the air once more but had no time to counter since he was immediately confronted by the twisted movements of a chain rigidly going up and down in a thunder pattern. Sensing that the attack would get him, Yakos wasted no energy trying to dodge and instead thrust his hand forward once more. "**CORONA BLAST!**" The image of a screeching bird raising its wings appeared behind him and a massive, round blast of concentrated fire cosmos was shot from his fists.

Shinta watched in shock the sun-like sphere crash straight through his Thunder Wave, shattering the chain to pieces and move towards him. Something then suddenly tightened around his wrist and pulled him out of there, saving him from being hit by the blast which collision with the ground released a fire shock wave that still struck him.

Shinta screamed and felt his helmet being knocked off and his back plate cracking. Saint Cynthia caught him in mid air and broke his fall. "SHINTA, are you okay?"

The Andromeda Saint trembled in pain, though his pink aura still maintained itself. "S-Saint Cynthia, you s-saved me." he thanked her as she helped him get on his feet.

Cynthia turned to the two Specters cornering them. Kairos eyes were once again bright light and the airborne Bennu was already charging a second attack. The fires around them intensified, filling the air with black smoke. The scent of death, blood and burning flesh felt stronger than ever. Cynthia's eyes struggled to stay open behind her mask. "_This is bad. I don't think we can break through them._" she deduced. "Stay strong, Shinta. We can win this."

Shinta saw the world shaking. The blast missed him but the shock wave hit him bad. "I-I won't give up."

Cynthia nodded. "I know you won't... I know you're brave."

Kairos raised his staff and held it at length. "It's time for you to join your ancestors. Tell them of your failures and bask in their disappointment."

The airborne Yakos burned his cosmos intensely in preparation. "I'll take you down both at once. Good bye, Saints! CORONA-"

"**PEGASUS** **BLADE!**"

The Shaman Specter bellowed andscreamed in pain after the sound of black metal being pierced through was heard. All the eyes in the area turned to him and widened when they saw an arm encased in a burning, bright orange cosmos blade layer rammed through his back while a white-armored arm was wrapped around his neck. "KAIROS!" he screamed.

Cynthia widened his eyes. "What?!"

Shinta's smile beamed up. "Lance!"

The blade of fire cosmos suddenly twisted itself to the side and intensified it's shine, burning it's victim's insides and cutting them apart. Blood gushed out the Shaman Specter's mouth before he was kicked off the impalement to the ground, revealing a white armored Pegasus Saint with an enraged look on his blood-red eyes and a burning aura of fire cosmos around his body. The blue-light in Kairos' eyes vanished. "Y-you're s-supposed to be d-dead!" he whispered before his face turned pale.

Lance's Blade canceled itself and his fire aura calmed down a bit. He panted heavily, not used to the rate his element burned through his reserves. He turned his eyes to his two allies. "Shinta, what are you doing here?! I told you to get reinforcements and you came back with _one_ Saint!?" he growled in frustration. "Forget it, it doesn't matter. Now that I took the one causing the jamming...It's only a matter of time for the Gold-ranked Saints to arrive."

There was a moment that Shinta did not register Lance's yelling. "Oh, thank Athena, Lance you're okay...I... The Specter said he killed you."

Lance turned his eyes upwards to the flying enemy. "Don't worry, he'll soon have that backwards!"

Cynthia analyzed the Pegasus Saint. She had been told about his unusual eye color and intimidating appearance. There was no time to worry about his partnership with Shinta just yet, though. "I have ordered for more reinforcements, but these Specters did a good job jamming the area, Pegasus. It will take a while for the effect to cease. We'll have to work together to take this one down or he'll kill us in the meantime."

"I don't need your help!" Lance protested, clenching his raised fist. "I can handle him. He's mine!"

"I'm a Silver Saint and you'll listen to my orders, Pegasus. Do not approach him recklessly." Cynthia then raised her chains and prepared herself to strike the Specter. "So long as he can fly I'm the only one who can still reach him, so follow my lead."

While the Pegasus Saint argued with the Silver one, Yakos turned his green eyes to the sky and saw the clouds of Black Raven slowly drift apart. He felt his teeth grit almost against his will and his finger nails dig into his palm guards. "Fucking Pegasus! I should have smashed your head with a rock! What did you do to my men?!"

Lance quit his arguing with the Silver Saint Amazon. "While you were fighting these two I moved around town taking them down one-by-one. I couldn't find any survivors, though..."

Shinta wasn't insensible to the slight tone of guilt in Pegasus's voice. "...It's okay, Lance. I know you did your best." There was a sudden glance from Pegasus to Shinta. He wondered who the woman he brought was. Intending to focus on the fight, though, he burned his cosmos aura until it's white color ignited itself into flaring orange. Shinta stared at the new energy the Bronze Saint boasted. "Your cosmos!"

"I don't know how, but I managed to unlock my element. I'm now burning my cosmos with actual fire." he pointed at the Bennu Specter and smirked. "I suppose I have you to thank for. You and your men really tested my strength and your Corona Blast at the end was just what I needed to push myself over the line. Thanks to you, I was able to kill the rest of your men and this Specter with much more ease."

Cynthia watched the Bennu Specter seethe with rage at the provocation. She recalled what she had been told about Pegasus' fight with Kastiel and realized how the Bronze Saint beat him. Kastiel had always been unrefined and reckless in combat. It was now obvious to her Pegasus had pushed his buttons and was now trying the same on Yakos.

She prepared her chain for the opportunity Pegasus was trying to create.

Bennu Yakos's energy exploded into an aura of raging purple fire. "That's it! I don't care if you've unlocked your element, I'll personally make sure you writhe just as much in your final moments as you will in Hades' realm." He then punched the air in Pegasus' direction. **CORONA**-"

"**GREAT CAPTURE: SPIRAL DUCT!**" Saint Cynthia shouted.

Yakos barely had time to turn to her before his fist was suddenly wrapped in a chain that then pulled him to the side, throwing him off balance. His wings flapped violently to keep him up in the air while the Amazon's blue cosmos intensified. "Bitch! Let go of me."

"Shinta, now!"

Yakos kept on struggling against the chain, but something large, burning and wooden was thrown and crashed against his side, sending him spiraling down in pain and confusion to a much lower altitude. He recovered just before hitting the floor, managing one desperate wing flap before grabbing the chain holding him.

He pulled for it with all his strength, throwing the Amazon off her feet before he snapped one of the links to free himself. "You're mine, bitch-"

"**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST!**" Lance appeared out of nowhere and struck his damaged chest plate with a powerful concentrated blow that blasted through his protection and hit him directly. His world went dark and blood gushed out his mouth, but he had enough strength to recover and smash his pointy elbow on the Saint's face.

Lance stumbled back, grabbing his nose. Yakos instantly swept at him with a fist. A white-armored hand, however, suddenly caught its wrist, raised it high to allows Lance to move past him, and a fiery aura burned behind him. "**PEGASUS BLADE!**"

Shinta watched as his partner's new, powerful cosmos filled his arm once more with an orange blade before Pegasus brought it down on the Specter's wing. There was a loud, snapping sound of metal being shattered through by a sword of cosmos and Yakos suddenly felt his left side a lot lighter. The Specter widened his eyes, not believing he just allowed his foe to cut off his wing.

Lance's boot struck his back without mercy and with a lot of cosmos, sending him flying and crashing against a burning building which supporting beams shattered, letting its porch crash down on the screaming Specter, digging him underneath piles of fire and wood he had victimized earlier.

A cloud of smoke and embers screened the area and a moment of silence followed. Pegasus, however, took no chance. He roared while burning his cosmos, charging his next attack. Before him, beams of wood started moving around, denouncing the Specter's survival. A black armored arm burst through the rubble pile and the Specter slowly emerged from the rubble, coughing and damaged all over.

There was the faint sound of a neighing horse and the image of a Pegasus flashed behind Lance. His tightened his right fist. "**PEGASUS!**" he then thrust it at the Specter. "**FLAME ATTACK!**" A huge torrent of flames was suddenly shot from his fist, flying in a twirling motion at high speed towards the Specter, starring the Bronze Saint's new attack.

Shinta and Cynthia regrouped and watched the flames run over the screaming Specter before exploding on top of him in a cloud of smoke and fire. The flame-throwing attack ceased shortly after, leaving behind a panting Lance staring at the destruction before him.

The Pegasus Saint dropped to his knees. Shinta screamed his name and rushed to his side. "Lance, are you alright?!"

Lance coughed, feeling the exhaustion catch up to him. He looked at his hand and saw his fire aura vanishing. "I-I'll be fine..."

Cynthia watched Guardnia's student tending for the Pegasus Saint. It did not surprise her for Shinta to want to help someone; it would if he didn't, in fact. Still, she took note of how the boy wasted no time to do so and wondered if things were alright after all. "You shouldn't push yourself too far, especially if you just woke up that element."

"W-who are you, anyway?"

Shinta then realized he was yet to introduce her. "Oh, sorry. She's Saint Cynthia, Lance. I ran into her on my way to get reinforcements. I was really lucky to find her."

Lance's tired red eyes looked up at her. "A-are you going to chastise me for beating up Kastiel, too?!"

The Amazon shook her head. "After what happened today, no." She saw him get up only with Shinta's help. "You should take a rest."

"Shut up! You're more wounded than I am."

Cynthia grabbed her more visible slice wound. While Shinta was dealing with Yakos, Kairos had given her a hell of a fight. All three of them were hurt, she was tired and with a broken chain, Lance was exhausted and Shinta had two snapped chains and a very damaged Andromeda Cloth. They were a mess.

All around them, though, houses started to crash down to fire damage and the sky was still filled with black smoke and strange clouds. There were dead people all over the streets along with the corpses of soldiers from both Athena and Hades. They were lucky to be alive. "Only three survivors... and none of them from this village. This is awful."

Shinta's eyes looked down, tearful. "H-how could this have happened? S-so many people..."

"This is war, Shinta." Lance commented. "It will be much worse once actual Holy War is declared. Still... not all is bad. I managed to save one."

Shinta's teary eyes looked up at him. "You did?"

"She's at the northern entrance of the village, where I dropped her off. I secured the area so she's fine. I couldn't save her parents, though."

There was a sudden explosion at their side. The three Saints screamed and stepped away from the fire Lance had caused with his final attack. The black clouds of smoke spread away and a burning figure marched out of it. A hand reached out and fired a blast of fire cosmos.

Cynthia screamed in pain and fell to the ground, her shoulder pad blasted open and bleeding from its hole. Shinta screamed her name and Lance watched, shocked, as Bennu Yakos walked out of the bonfire he was buried into. His armor was wrecked, with several parts missing, specially in the upper left chest. His bloody left arm hang, having been pierced by a small wood plank piece, and his face was twisted into a bloody frown of gritting, vengeful teeth. "I'll kill you! I'll KILL YOU ALL!"

Pegasus saw the maddened Specter raise his fire cosmos to the limits and prepare another Corona Blast. "D-damn it! Here we go again!" someone then rushed in front of Lance and raised his hands. "S-Shinta!? What are you doing? Get out of there, you fool! He'll kill you!"

Shinta ignored Pegasus and burned his pink cosmos, immersing himself in it. He braced himself.

Cynthia quivered in pain, but spotted Shinta's energy flowing. "_N-no, Shinta, it's too dangerous! Guardnia forbid you!_"

Once more, the image of the terrifying Egyptian bird emerged behind Yakos, raising its wings and opening up its beak. "Y-you'll be the first! I'll slaughter you! I'll watch Sanctuary burn even if it kills me! CORONA BLAST!" His hand burst into a flash of fire, shooting a massive sphere of flame cosmos.

Shinta crossed his arms in defense. He then let his cosmos explode. The Corona Blast crashed against him and Cynthia screamed his name.

There was yet another bright flash of light, this one emerging from Shinta's body, accompanied by a sudden spike of strength in the wind. A blasting, roaring sound followed and the shock of the two cosmos caused an explosion of light and earthquake, blinding Yakos, Pegasus and Cassiopeia.

The Corona Blast exploded, spreading fire all over that, for some reason, went around and over the three Saints. Pegasus watched in shock as the cosmos Shinta was releasing, together with the wind corrects it seemed to be sucking into the contact point, completely shielded them from the blast.

Yakos, too, saw this. "W-what?! What are you d-doing to my attack?!"

Shinta winced in effort. He tried to keep his own energy in control while at the same time releasing enough of it to fight off Corona Blast. All he saw in front of him was his own pink-colored energy keeping away a mass of fire. "I'm keeping it away from my friends!"

The hand that shot Corona Blast tightened itself. "It won't be that easy!"

Shinta gasped when the flames started concentrating themselves in front of him and digging deeper into his protective aura and wind wall. His feet dragged back against his will. "N-no! I won't let you harm them."

Lance squinted his red eyes at the attack as it pressed Shinta harder and harder. He gathered the energy he had left. He had nothing which could injure the Specter, but he had another idea. He charged straight forward towards Shinta, raised his arm above his head and burned his cosmos. "**Pegasus**!" He put himself at ramming speed. "**BARRIER**!"

Shinta suddenly saw Lance rush past him and create the transparent, curved barrier of cosmos on his arm. The Pegasus Saint, to Andromeda's shock, crash straight into the Corona Blast's side, as if trying to push it off Shinta's aura. "Lance, what are you doing?!"

"DIE, SAINTS!" screamed Yakos.

Lance, however, suddenly dropped to his knee while keeping his Barrier pressed against the solar sphere. "Shinta, jump off to my side!" The Andromeda Saint hesitated at first, trying to figure out Lance's plan, but decided to trust his friend. He turned off his cosmos, let go of Corona Blast and leaped to the side.

As a result, the Corona Blast was free to shift its pressure to Lance's barrier. The angle of Lance's arm, however, coupled with the Barrier's curved surface, caused the concentrated round sphere of energy to slide off the attack and shoot away harmlessly towards the ruined buildings, exploding once it impacted on the ground.

Yakos stared in disbelief at the unharmed Saints as the dark clouds of Black Raven started to finally let light in, not believing that the Pegasus Saint had managed to nullify his best attack.

The Cassiopeia Saint was also surprised. "_He did it! He saved all three of us._"

Shinta panted heavily, refusing to let his guard down but glad that he trusted Pegasus. "L-Lance are you okay?"

The Pegasus Saint dropped his hands to the ground. He used his very last strength to maintain the cosmos shield in that grueling second of contact between his Barrier and Corona Blast. "I-I should be asking you that, idiot!"

He gritted his teeth. He saw the three exhausted Saints and wasted no time burning his cosmos once more. He raised his fist. "JUST DIE, ALREADY! **CORONA BLA**- GAHH!" Yakos screamed, feeling something pierce his other shoulder.

The three Saints widened their eyes in shock. They saw the Bennu Specter's body pierced by a thin, golden beam that came out of nowhere. It dissipated easily, letting the blood gush out the new wound and the Specter fall to his knees. Lance blinked. "W-what the hell?!" All three of them turned around and widened their eyes.

Before them, standing amidst the burning houses, a figure wrapped in full body golden armor stood with his finger stretched at the Specter. He wore a large helmet with a mask on each cheek and red insignia on his forehead that shadowed most of his face. His shoulders were protected by rectangular pads that curved downwards for better coverage and his smooth, decorated golden chest plate topped a metal waist guard of sectioned golden plates. Golden greaves of protruding rectangular knee guards, thick forearm protections of point elbow guards, fingerless gauntlets and a large white cape completed the set, presenting a shining golden knight of long, blue hair that promised to end the situation once and for all.

Yakos saw the fires in the village dying out mysteriously one after the other, obviously the work of the Gold Saint, even though the man did not seem to move. Soldiers started approaching from the southern entrance of the village led by a very tall man of hawkish eyes, long black hair and short beard.

Bennu Yakos cursed Sanctuary. He cursed Pegasus for killing Kairos, thus slowly ceasing the effect of Black Raven. He then looked up to the emerging sun among the black clouds and cursed the gods themselves. But there was one person he would wish the best of luck. His made his cosmos burn, spread his arms as much as he could the sky and saluted him. "LONG LIVE LORD L-" A second, bullet-like beam struck his heart, turning his world red and dark and sending him spiraling towards the floor.

The warriors of Sanctuary all stood there and watched as the Bennu Specter's life faded away. The Gemini Saint waved his arm and ordered his men to sweep the area for survivors and tend to the Saints. The last remaining fires died out and the sun shone in Arcadia once more.

{======================|0|======================}

**Pegasus Lance**

**Strength: **6**  
Skill: **6**  
Mind: **5**  
Spirit: **4**  
Violence: **7**  
Cosmos: **Silver Rank

**Andromeda Shinta**

**Strength: **4**  
Skill: **6**  
Mind: **5**  
Spirit: **6**  
Violence: **4**  
Cosmos: **Undetermined

**Cassiopeia Cynthia**

**Strength: **4**  
Skill: **7**  
Mind: **5**  
Spirit: **5**  
Violence: **6**  
Cosmos: **Silver Rank

**Bennu Yakos**

**Strength: **6**  
Skill: **5**  
Mind: **5**  
Spirit: **5**  
Violence: **7**  
Cosmos: **Terrestrial Rank (Silver)

**Shaman Kairos**

**Strength: **5**  
Skill: **4**  
Mind: **7**  
Spirit: **7**  
Violence: **7**  
Cosmos: **Terrestrial Rank (Silver)

**Gemini Saga**

**Strength: **6**  
Skill: **7**  
Mind: **8**  
Spirit: **6**  
Violence: **5**  
Cosmos: **1300**  
Final Fighting Score: 8320**

_Author Note: Final Fighting Score is the power level of the characters and it gives you an estimate of how well a certain character should do in a fight. However, it only tells you who should have the upper hand and does not take in account factors like Cloth power level, strategies, special weaknesses, pre-battle exhaustion and other things so remember, even if the scores are told to you before the fight starts, victory is never automatically granted to the higher power level so as to preserve the tension in the story._

_The reason why Saga is the only one who gets a fully calculated score is because I do not intend to give scores to Silver and Bronze Ranked characters so as to not go against whatever opinion you may have over the exact power gap and because it would be problematic in a general manner. In conclusion, only Gold Ranks get FFS scores._

_FFS is calculated by multiplying the average of the first five scores with the cosmos score. Some values may fluctuate with certain characters._

{======================|0|======================}

**A couple of hours later...**

{======================|0|======================}

Gold Saint Gemini Saga watched as the two Specters were stripped of their armor and carried off by the soldiers of Athena. His blue eyes also gazed upon the destruction all around him and he wondered how it was possible that no one in Sanctuary other than the three Saints they found in Arcadia had noticed the atrocity that was going on in one of Sanctuary's most important border areas.

He had been training in southern Macedonia when, all of a sudden, his mastered 7th sense picked up the cosmos of a Specter in the region they were now in together with one powerful Saint cosmos and two other weaker ones. Knowing the region was populated, Saga was also alarmed by the frightening lack of lesser, civilian cosmos so he instantly rushed to the scene. On his way there, he ran past Ionia's company, who had apparently received a message of an emergency flare having been fired near the Ismara outpost region. The urgency of reinforcing the three Saints against the Specter, however, weighed heavily against getting a quick brief from the Fort Commander.

As a result, he was the first Gold Saint to arrive and, according to protocol, should be the only one since the situation was now in control.

All around him, blacked ruins of houses laid and corpses of innocent people were gathered by the soldiers of Peloponesia. Ionia was receiving a report from the Cassiopeia Silver Saint.

Saga reinforced the illusion on his face that protected his identity and approached the two of them. "Anything new?" he asked.

Cassiopeia and Ionia knelt down before him. Saga noticed that the Amazon was still in pain, as she quivered almost imperceptibly while kneeling. "Searches are complete. Lord Gemini. I'm afraid... there was only one survivor." she said. "Unfortunately, we have not been able to find out anything about this raiding group. The Pegasus Saint killed one of the two leaders as well as most of the Skeleton Soldiers while Saint Andromeda and I finished off the rest of them."

Saga berated himself. He should have captured the Bennu Specter for interrogation, perhaps even store him in Another Dimension. However, the Specter seemed ready to attack and kill the three tired, injured Saints and his desire to protect him spoke louder than duty. "_Aiolos is starting to rub off on me._" he concluded. The first shot that Saga fired in urgency doomed the Specter, and then it seemed like he was going to try a suicide attack while praising Hades. "_He didn't seem like he was about to say 'Hades', though.__.._"

"Fortunately, I was able to organize an intervention squad as well as a secondary one that covered the Ismara region, where we found some escaping Skeleton Soldiers, once we received the SOS." commented Ionia. "Who knows how many lives would have been lost if I hadn't acted quickly. Lord Gemini, I'd like to stress the staggering communications deficiency in the area. It is vital that the fortress of Peloponesia receives more funding so we can improve our infrastructures and bureaucracy. More qualified and, preferably, Silver ranked manpower seems reasonable, specially since it has been made clear by this disaster that Hades does not intend to play by the rules."

Saga nodded. "This was, indeed, a disgusting attack..."

Cassiopeia intervened. "Lord Gemini, I'd like to remind you my personal comments in the reports. These Skeleton Soldiers and the two Specters... Their behavior was truly bizarre."

Saga looked once more at the Silver Saint's report. She wrote of how the raiders sounded more like a revolted mob taking back what was theirs than an organized effort from Hades to harass Sanctuary. "It is indeed very likely that extraordinary circumstances revolved around this event. I will speak to the Pope of all this." He then turned to Ionia. "Secure the border areas and evacuate the border villages. You have my authorization to do whatever it takes to prevent more lives from being lost."

Ionia bowed. "I shall stake my honor in it, Lord Gemini. For Athena!"

"Yes, for Athena..." Saga then watched the Silver Saint and the Fort Commander march off to coordinate the final touches in taking control of the area. He turned his sight to the two Bronze Saints and the only survivor of the attack, the girl named Alexis. The green haired Andromeda Saint seemed to be trying t cheer up the traumatized teenage girl. He was more interested, however, in the Pegasus Saint. He had heard much about him.

Saga found himself spotted by Pegasus and locking eyes with him. For a moment, the Gemini Saint got the feeling those red eyes could see right through the shadow of his helmet and into his face. They were quite unnerving and sharp. "_I was once told he went to Death Queen Island in a mission... and that he suffered much in it because the Pope did not send a Gold Saint reinforcement. He's probably not grateful for my intervention._" He then received a mental message from Sanctuary warning him of a summoning by the Pope. "_It matters not. I have much to do and the Pope probably wants to know what's going on. A mere Pegasus Bronze Saint should not be my concern._"

Saga then notified Ionia via mental message that he was leaving him in charge. After charging his golden cosmos, he took a single step in Greece's direction and warped off at the speed of light.

Meanwhile, near the medical tents that were mounted by Ionia's men, Andromeda Shinta tried his best to talk to the glass-eyed red-haired girl sitting in front of him. She had finally stopped crying, but the marks of it were painfully clear in her reddened cheeks and her totally defeated spirit was palpable to him. A mantle had been put around her to keep her warm and comfortable and she seemed unharmed, but the true damage was on the inside. He wished he could make her feel better somehow.

"Hmm, your name is Alexis, right?" he asked. There was no response, either verbal or physical. The girl did not even turn her eyes to him. "My name is Shinta. I... I know you've just gone through something terrible, but..." he struggled to figure out what to say. What did you tell someone who lost her parents as brutally and suddenly as she did? He wished he knew the answer. The sight of her sadness was tearing his heart apart. "...but it's going to be okay. Everything is going to be alright... right?"

Lance saw her lower her head further. "Shinta, just leave her be! She doesn't want to talk, okay?"

"But-" Shinta then 'eep'ed almost imperceptibly when Lance gave him the death look. He nodded reluctantly and sat down. "O-okay."

A moment of tense silence then followed, only broken by the sound of soldiers moving back and forth around them. Lance watched the girl just stare the ground, broken, so it caught his attention when she suddenly spoke. "...You said... your name was Lance?" The bronze Saint nodded. "T-thank..." Her face suddenly sank into her palms. "T-thank you for saving me...I... N-no! No, _NO_!"

Shinta's eyes teared up in sympathy and Lance just looked away as the girl quietly wailed again her hands, trying to contain the tears.

Cassiopeia Cynthia and Ionia approached the group. They seemed to ignore Alexis' sobbing, though they couldn't really tell in the masked woman's case. Lance suddenly felt the tall man's eyes looked down on him. "Pegasus Lance and Andromeda Shinta, you are both congratulated for your heroic interference. Though... it _is_ a shame that you couldn't save more lives..." he commented, a bit bitterly.

Lance scoffed and hid his narrowed eyes from the superior.

Shinta, in turn, just thanked him. "We appreciate that, Commander Ionia. We tried our very best. I wish, too, we could have done more..."

"Don't say that, Shinta." said Cynthia. "You were a real hero, today. Guardnia would be proud of you."

Shinta shook his head. "But Lance did the most of it!" he stressed. "He was brave enough to go after the group of enemies even though he knew it was dangerous. It's because of him that Alexis is still alive. He's the one who should be called a hero, not me!"

Cynthia spotted Pegasus look away nervously with Shinta's compliment. The Amazon, too, had been impressed by his gesture and had to admit she took the nasty stories about him for granted. Maybe Shinta would be fine with him.

Ionia, however, wasn't as appreciative. "Either way, the situation is almost wrapped up. I expect further reports from all three of you. I also demand that the Pegasus Saint present himself for investigation."

"Wait, WHAT?!" Lance exploded.

Ionia was unmoved. In fact, he squinted at the Pegasus Saint in suspicion."I find it very strange that a Saint as uneducated as you are was able to track down the Specter group so fast, so much that you were able to interfere in their attack so soon. I expect you to face proper authorities and explain step-by-step how you were able to deduce so much of the situation just from the leads in Ismara and then find out where they were going to strike next so fast. Moreover, you will explain your decision to send back the Andromeda Saint-"

"I was able to track them because, unlike you, I may be uneducated, but I have actually hunted people down!" Lance interrupted. He stood up and confronted Ionia, looking the bastard right in the eyes. "I don't have to listen to your garbage just because your Silver Saints don't bother training people properly and if you _do_ call someone on me, you can just expect me to report a giant middle finger up our _proper authorities' _asses!"

"Lance!" protested the shocked Shinta. "Don't turn this into a fight; it's going to be alright. They just want to ascertain the situation! If you explain it to them like you did to me, it will be fine, right?"

"BULLSHIT! They want to tie me to this attack!" Lance accused.

The experienced fort commander scoffed with the youth's outrage. Much like Lord Gemini, he had better things to do than put up with the pouting of an atheist rebel. "You should listened to your partner, Saint Lance. He seems wiser than you are. After all, you have nothing to fear if you are truly innocent." He then turned to Alexis. "As for you, miss, I presume you are fully aware of your situation, correct?"

It took her a while, but the tearing girl raised her face from her palms and nodded slowly. "Y-yes..."

This was the part that was pissing Lance off the most. "I don't get it! I don't get why Alexis has to be dragged into forced labor!"

Ionia explained. "Her family contracted very serious financial problems. Whatever small savings their lower salaries of miner and farmer may have gathered, it is not enough to pay the debt she has inherited to Sanctuary. Moreover, as a citizen of Sanctuary, she is obliged to pay that debt to the Golden Zodiac for letting her live under the protective rays of our Goddess Athena." His eyes turned to the road that would lead to the mine that financed the village. "Since she has no qualifications and since the iron mine that was the lifeline of Arcadia has lost today so many workers, it only makes sense she picks up the work her parents will now not."

"Great idea, we'll let the radon kill her!" Pegasus protested. He had heard much of the dangers of deep mining since there was a closed stardust mine in Mount Olympus. "I don't know why I went through the trouble of keeping her alive! You're just going to send her to die of lung cancer and mine collapse!"

As the others judged by the narrowing of his eyes, Ionia was enjoying Pegasus' tone. "Sanctuary needs that mine operating. We have lost many miners in Arcadia and many soldiers in Ismara and I will make my first priority to secure the military footing and resource extraction factors provided to Sanctuary by _all_ regions overlooked by Peloponesia!" He argued. "Miss Alexis will be fine and she will rejoice in serving our goddess." He saw Lance unsatisfied by this. "She should be thanking me. I'm providing her a much better alternative to debtor's prison."

Lance tried to think of something to counter argue with. He could just immediately tell that appealing to Ionia's kind side would never work. He was hellbent on making the best of the situation even if that meant forcing the single survivor Lance rescued to a lifetime of dangerous, back-breaking mine work.

To everyone's surprise, though, Alexis intervened. "No, I won't do it." Even without raising her sobbing head, she could already feel the indignant glare of Ionia fall on her. "I watched my father live a miserable life in the rock hole. He'd never let me work in that place and I wouldn't want it anyway!"

"That's not your choice, young lady!" Ionia threatened. "You lived in Sanctuary, were raised by Sanctuary and you kept your life today in the midst of such carnage thanks to a man from Sanctuary. If you don't pay your family's debt, you will face trial and you _will_ be sent to jail!"

"I never said I wouldn't pay. I just said I wouldn't work in that mine." Ionia then gave her a look that asked for an explanation. "You said we lost many miners, but also a lot of soldiers from Ismara. I..." She took a moment of hesitation and gulped. "I will join the army!"

Everyone widened their eyes. Cassiopeia Cynthia, as a female Saint, was the first to interfere. "Do you know what you're saying, Alexis? If you join the army, you'll have to undergo Saint training. That means that failure is not an option! You will die if you give up and you will not be able to take the path of the foot soldier after your third year because you're a girl."

"I know that!" Alexis protested. "I know what I'm doing..."

Ionia growled to himself. They had enough weak women taking Cloths from strong would-be Saints. Being wise enough not to advocate that in front of a Silver Saint Amazon, he attempted to dissuade her. "You are too old! Recruits over ten years old are not allowed!"

For the first time, Alexis look right in Ionia's eyes. "I have unlocked my cosmos already! Even if its small, I can join at my age if I've done that."

"You will fail due to weakness then!" Ionia shouted, referring not to her gender, but said smallness of her cosmos. "How will you repay Athena's kindness with so little potential and education?"

"I was ten when I joined the army and I didn't have any cosmos." Pegasus interfered. He smirked. "Taking that in consideration, I'd say she stands a better chance to join the army than I did. Have her join the recruitment process that kills nine out of ten candidates! Doesn't _Athena_ say you should protect people's right to choose? I'd say that extends to how her citizens want to pay her taxes and tithes." He only detected a slight gritting of teeth on the Fort Commander. "I thought so."

Ionia narrowed his eyes. More and more he disliked Pegasus, specially with the way he referred to their Goddess with such spite. "I expect you to present yourself by the end of the week for investigation. Do me and favor and miss the deadline. It will give me the pleasure to personally head the squad that will hunt you down." Ionia then walked off, leaving an enraged Lance, a bewildered Shinta and a heart broken Alexis in his wake.

"Asshole! What the fuck is wrong with him?!" Lance growled.

Cynthia sat by Alexis and rubbed the broken bird's back to calm her down. "He's a veteran from the Civil War of eleven years ago. He fought under Akassios, the former Gemini Saint. Lots of men under Akassios' leadership turned into very strict and zealous people, just like Ionia. But Ionia actually isn't so bad compared to some other Saints I've met from that time since he actually tries to do what's best for Sanctuary." The Amazon let Alexis rest her head on her shoulder and comber her red hair with her hand. "It's okay, darling. You're going to be fine."

"Are you going to stay here for now, Saint Cynthia?"

The Silver Saint nodded. "Yes, but you should head back and do what Ionia told you. I, too, have many things to do." She stood up and offered her hand to Lance. "It was nice meeting you, Saint Pegasus." Lance was taken aback, unused to be treated well by Amazons or Silver Saints for that matter. He hesitated, but eventually shook her hand. She then turned to Shinta and hugged him tightly. "It was good to see you again, Shinta. You've grown up so much since I last saw you. Remember what Guardnia taught you and keep doing your best."

Shinta nodded. It was so nice to catch up with a person who had almost been like a mother to him in Andromeda Island. He wished it had been in different circumstances. "Thank you, Saint Cynthia." She then let him go off to his life. Shinta noticed that Lance had already trailed off and hurried after him. "W-wait! Lance, wait for me!"

The Pegasus Saint put hands in pockets and sighed. He tried to forget about Ionia and especially Alexis. He felt bad for leaving her in such state, but there was nothing he could do for her. He sensed Shinta reaching him. "Calm down, wuss, I was just getting ready to leave for Sanctuary."

"Without me?" Shinta saw Lance shrug his shoulders. "Lance, are you okay?"

The Pegasus Saint kept walking, wanting to leave Arcadia once and for all. Since when had Shinta start to learn to see through his facade "No, I feel exhausted and sick to my stomach..."

"Have you been able to burn your cosmos into fire like before?" asked Shinta. "That was really cool! How did you do that?"

"Oh, I don't know! How did you block that Corona Blast?!" Lance asked, irritated. "I... Sorry, I'm on edge. I... I should have trusted you..."

The Andromeda Saint blinked. He sensed that Lance was somehow opening up a bit, maybe due to everything that happened that day. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that if I had just trusted in you back in Ismara and brought you with me... maybe we could have saved more lives!" Lance slapped his thigh. "Shit, Alexis' parents and a lot of other people would still be alive now!"

"Lance, what makes you say that?" Shinta demanded to know. "I know that a lot of bad stuff happened, but... I trust you, Lance. I trust your judgment. I'm sure that if you hadn't told me to go back, I probably wouldn't have gotten Saint Cynthia to help us out. She would fire her flare and maybe... maybe something else worse could have happened, right? And, in the end, you saved me from that Corona Blast I was fighting with your Barrier tactic, didn't you?"

Lance scoffed. "Why do you always try to make others feel better? I was complimenting you, damn it! Just take it!" he protested. "Take pride on what you've done. Be selfish for once, it's healthy for you, you know?"

Shinta though hard on this. "I... don't think that's true, Lance. I like helping people, it's just who I am, I guess. I mean, I've been selfish before. Master Guardnia has berated me a couple of times and I've always felt terrible afterward, specially when I injured someone in sparring."

"Agh! Enough with the pacifism, I can't take it! Besides, I have the feeling you'd be fine with that pink cosmos of yours." Lance stopped and confronted him. "What was that all about, anyway? Have you been holding back something on me?"

Shinta's eyes shifted. "N-no, I mean, I..." Lance's stare intensified. "I-It's a power I have! It's nothing special, really."

The torture of a pair of red eyes stabbing through his soul held him in place for a while, but the Andromeda Saint was able to take a sigh of relief when his partner dropped the subject and resumed walking. "Alright, but this isn't over yet. I want you to show that off sometime."

The Andromeda Saint tried to keep up with Pegasus. It had been a horrible, long day. The both of them were tired and they were leaving behind a massacred, destroyed city. Shinta wished he could call Alexis' survival a happy ending, but the future Ionia reserved for her just didn't seem bright.

Instead, Shinta tried to cheer up the person next to him. "Lance, I want you to know that I think you're a good person. No matter what people say, I know you are, specially after what you've done today. You're my friend and my comrade and I'm really proud to be working with you."

Lance widened his eyes, but did not show it to Shinta. Instead, he limited his answer to a whisper that took quite a bit of strength to get off his throat. "Thank you..."

{======================|0|======================}

**Present time, Pope's Halls...**

{======================|0|======================}

"The massacre of Arcadia was a terrible affair that was left mostly unresolved." said Shion to the Gold Saints. "Despite its severity, it was ultimately labeled as a border friction incident of no official diplomatic impact when it was discovered that the armors worn by the Specters in that battle were partially inactive, indicating the lack of Hades' will in their attack."

Mu raised his hand. "Do you mean that the Specters were acting against their God's wishes, just rampaging across the countryside like rogues?"

Shion nodded. "Correct. Hades' Castle refused to let our emissaries enter and Hades' liaison sent a messenger with a sincere letter of apology for the lack of honor in the Bennu Specter's group. According to her, a large group of at least five Specters and over fifty Skeleton Soldiers had broken off from their army in rebellion, intending to cause chaos on Earth with the armors they took from Hades. Had Hades wanted them to do this, their attack would have been much more brutal and hard to stop. Fortunately," he then waved his hand at the Gemini Saint. "Saga was there to intervene."

Capricorn Kirin addressed the blue-haired boy. "So you met Pegasus Lance then?" Saga nodded. "Did you conclude anything special?"

Saga reflected deeply on that day. It was still something he remembered clearly as the first incident with Hades' forces since he became a Gold Saint. "He did not strike me as someone ill-intended, but definitely as misguided and angry. He was not of note to me back then so I paid him little mind."

"Unfortunately," resumed the Pope. "Pandora's message, which happened to be correct, meant that three other Specters were still at large. As Aquarius Malta recalls, I had him sweep the land for any information on Specter sightings. However, they hid themselves well." Shion joined hands behind waist. "The next chapter of Lance's career, however, resolved that matter. I am talking of course, of the assault on Andromeda Island..."

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Andromeda in Chains, part 1 of 2

**Release Date**: August 31, 2014

**Description**: Months after the attack on Arcadia, the two Bronze Saints receive word that Shinta's Training Ground, Andromeda Island, has been attacked by an unknown force. They rush off to rescue Shinta's Master, but things don't go as planned.

_Author's note: Thus ends the first new storyline of the revamp. Older readers may recall that Lance's awakening of the fire cosmos was something glossed over and premiered in the next storyline when Lance first used the Flame Attack. However, I wanted to take the opportunity provided by the revamp to tell that story in detail, which in turn would give me the chance to dive more deeply into Sanctuary's reality, introduce a couple more characters and set up the future of the story better. I hope you enjoyed it._

_For those of you who don't know, Ionia is a character from Saint Seiya Omega which, yes, much like Lost Canvas, Next Dimension and Episode G, will be considered 'canon' in LR. There will be careful adaptations to tie all the plot conflicts between the different stories and the old readers know well that I have a plan for all of this._


	9. 1A: Andromeda In Chains Part 1 of 2

**N****otable OCs up until**** now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; MMC; Sanctuary Forts and Outposts

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests

Author Notes:

-The quote below is partially extracted from Jenny DeVic's Love You Kill Me fanfiction. You do not need to read it to follow my story, though.

-While the writing is in English, keep in my that most of the characters are supposed to be speaking Greek.

_Please enjoy and review._

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_"____... for as long as I've taught, I've never met anyone who came here with a long sleeved hooded shirt and pants. This place is notorious____for its weather. During the day, it never falls____below forty degrees Celsius____and determining on the volcano__ a____nd where you are at, it____can rise up to seventy__. ____My own Master had m____e____drink water practically every few minutes____and____it is not____wise to____wander____off on your____own____ before your____second year._

___This place is rated A in the difficulty chart for a reason,____Shun__. ____It has been called an island second closest to hell.____You will not survive if you do not follow my orders and June's to the letter.____I don't want to sound cruel, but if you want to see your brother again with a Cloth on your back, you must overcome this environment and much more."_

-Cepheus Daidalos, warning Shun on his first day in Andromeda Island about the Training Ground's dangers

_{======================|__0|======================}_

_**Present Time**_

**Golden Zodiac, 13th Temple, Pope's Halls**

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The six Gold Saints exchanged glances while personally reflecting on the gruesome story of Arcadia's destruction. The Pope awaited patiently for any doubts or questions to rise before he moved on to the subject of Andromeda Island. He wanted to hear their thoughts.

The three older ones did not pronounce themselves. Instead, it was the very youngest, Aries Mu, who raised his hand high in the air so as to be seen. Pope Shion nodded to him. "Yes, Mu?"

"Master, I have a question. One of the main problems with Lance was his reputation, right? Didn't his involvement in this battle make him look better?" he wondered.

Sagittarius Aiolos, at his side, also raised his head in interest. "Good question. If he saved the girl and defeated the two Specters, he should have earned points for good behavior, right?"

However, the Pope sighed. "Unfortunately, while what he accomplished on that day was admirable, the investigation that was pushed on him immediately afterward by then Fort Commander Ionia cast a black stain in the story. Capricorn Kirin, you were informed of the details of the investigation, were you not?"

The Capricorn Saint bowed slightly. "Yes, your Holiness. I was the first Gold Saint informed by Saga of what was going on and, hence, I rushed to the scene to determine what happened." He took a pause to recall the strenuous process that was looking all over for evidence in Ismara and Arcadia, as well as the interrogations. "Everyone involved was questioned. I did not participate directly in the interviews, but I observed and over-viewed most of them, including Pegasus Lance's."

"It is my understanding he was able to demonstrate his innocence, correct?"

"Correct, your Holiness. It seems his experience as an assault operative was helpful. He knew of several objects on Ismara's scene that could be used to track the Specters' next movements and was able to explain how he used them to do so." confirmed Kirin.

Mu scratched is head. "Well, that's great. If so, how come he ended up still being a bad guy?"

"People are suspicious, Mu. It's easier to believe in others' slyness than in their integrity." Saga said. "Yes, he saved that girl, but most of the population also heard that he was investigated after the attack and that he managed to 'get off the hook', so it made him look bad. It doesn't matter that he was innocent, Mu. The damage of the slander was still done."

The Lemurian child frowned. "But that is so dumb and unfair!"

"I think I remember people asking around why he didn't save _more_ people and just that girl." Aiolos recalled. He held his chin as he reflected on the matter. "I suppose that, if they had family and friends in Arcadia or Ismara, they had the right to wonder that, but still..."

There was the sound of a childish groan coming from Mu. "But he and the other two Saints did the best they could, right? Right?" No one seemed convinced. "I don't get it! He gets punished for doing bad stuff as well as good deeds? What is he supposed to do, then?"

A hearty laughter echoed in the room. Taurus Daniel pointed at the Cancer Gold Cloth. "Have you forgotten what we're discussing here, Mu? There is still much to be told. The people may be scared of him, but we could offer him the proper reward if he is, indeed, deserving. The people may have not been watching with attention, but the Pope has."

"True words, Daniel." commented the Pope, so as to get their attention to his next story. "As I also said, it was confirmed by Hades' liaison, Pandora, that three other Specters had gone rogue. Much was done from the part of Hades to prove to us that the Underworld did not intend to attack us."

The Sagittarius Saint narrowed his eyes. "Such as what, your Holiness? What could they have done to compensate the atrocity that was Ismara and Arcadia? You said yourself that they did not allow our envoys inside their fortress. How did this incident not break out into total war?"

"First of all, they starting by throwing at us as much evidence as possible that they had no hand in the matter. It was proven in the cosmos of the shattered Surplices the Specters wore in Arcadia that Hades' will was not behind the attack. Secondly, Hades' Castle offered the names of the three Specters asides from Bennu Yakos and Shaman Kairos who had rebelled, wishing us luck in capturing and executing them, no less." The Pope explained. "According to Pandora's letter, they were Basilisk Maia, Minotauros Guen and Gorgon Pell."

Gemini Saga recognized the first two titles from what he learned in Sanctuary Library about Hades' armies. They were part of a trio of dangerous Celestial Star Specters. "Do you not mean _Alraune_ Pell, your Holiness?"

"No, I do not, Saint Saga. I meant what I said." Shion confirmed. "I do not know of the whereabouts of the Alraune Specter, who usually teams up with Basilisk and Minotauros, but it seems most likely that, whomever he may be, Alraune stayed faithful to Hades while these other two rebelled." He then cleared his throat. "While the attack on Arcadia was, indeed, an unforgivable atrocity, it is still important to remind the three of you that a Holy War would mean much greater slaughter. It may sound strange that the God of the Underworld would provide so much assistance, but that just makes it even more vital to get Hades' side of the story, specially after learning about the state of the Surplices."

The intelligent, blue-haired Gemini was not convinced. "It all sounds to me like a clever ruse of Hades to attack us without retaliation."

"I agree!" Aiolos interfered. "That whole story sounds very strange to me. I know I'm not an experienced Gold Saint, but... do we really just _brush aside_what happened to Ismara and Arcadia?!"

To their surprise, it was the stoic Aquarius Malta who gave them the answer. "Saint Aiolos, Sanctuary's diplomacy is not so simple as just blowing the horns of war as soon as border friction occurs. Yes, what happened was terrible and enough cause for war, _but_... me, Daniel and Kirin, who know what war is and what people end up suffering with it, also know how it would be much worse to just attack Hades for this."

Aiolos watched the two other older Gold Saints hesitate a bit, but end up nodding somberly. "But-"

"There is more at stake here than a single village and border outpost. Saint Aiolos, you are a kind person whom I would never expect to just shove this matter under the rug." admitted Malta. "However, did you know that there used to be a full generation of Gold Saints of me, these two, and nine others just less than a decade ago... and how it was all lost thanks to a reckless declaration of Civil War?" he asked.

Aiolos quivered as he saw Malta's cold eyes waver into melancholic ones. He had been told that Aquarius Saints were merely taught to be stoic but that they never truly lost their warmheartedness. It was then that he also noticed how, indeed, from what used to be a full generation of powerful warriors, only three remained, excluding Libra Dohko. "_Only one war took so much from them, and it was not even a Holy one? I'm not convinced, but they must know what they're talking about._" He turned to Saga. "_Athena teaches us to be patient and that war, if necessary, should always be a defensive one. Maybe this is what she speaks of?_"

His friend scoffed. "_You know I'm not interested in theology, right? I never took you for such a warmonger, either._"

"_You know perfectly well that it's not about that, Saga. It's about justice and protecting our people. I wouldn't want to declare war or anything, but... I mean, what would you do if you were Pope and this happened?_" The Gemini Saint seemed to want to take a second to think about this. In the meantime, Aiolos turned to the Pope. "Your Holiness, it still doesn't explain the fact that there was a period right after the attack that Hades' Castle would not open its gates to envoys. How did they explain that."

The Pope rubbed his chin. This was the strangest part of it all. "_When they finally opened their gates to dialogue, the Specters claimed the__y__ suffered a second, unrelated incident involving a pair of escapees, one of them being a person of interest to the God Thanatos._" he recalled. "_It was such a bizarre excuse, but later on Saint Heracles Aguilon reported to have saved a pair of innocent women from a Judge of Hell. He was unable to extract information before killing the Specter, though, and the pair of women disappeared. To this day Sanctuary has no real __intel__ on that strange case._" The Pope cleared his throat to gather attention to the next subject. "Let's not dally on the past. We are here to discuss the future of a new generation, are we not?" This reminder seemed to improve the mood among the three older Gold Saints. "Feats are always important to judge someone. Arcadia was an important incident, as well as the next one we shall discuss. I am speaking, of course, of the attack on Andromeda Island."

{======================|0|======================}

**Chapter 9**

**First Arc**

**Episode 6**

**Andromeda in Chains**

{======================|0|======================}

**November of 1974**

**Two Months after Arcadia**

**Sanctuary Town's outskirts**

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The green-haired teen lightly placed his foot on top of the soccer ball as he planned his strategy. He saw the Pegasus Saint go tense, his red eyes narrowing, and assume a defensive pose. Shinta bit his lip. After performing the necessary calculations and position adjustments, he let go of the soccer ball, charged against it and struck it with the right side of his foot.

The goal keeper immediately sprung from the ground like a coiled spring and stretched out his hands toward the flying ball, determined to catch it. He leaped in the right direction and his fingers would touch the object, but Shinta's unorthodox kick caused the ball to suddenly curve the opposite way it was supposed to, going underneath the keeper and straight into the old, damaged net.

Shinta shouted and jumped in celebration while Lance crashed down on the floor in defeat, cursing and punching the ground. "DAMN IT! How the hell do you keep doing that?!"

The Andromeda Cloth, who watched from the sidelines, took the sharpened rock with its chain and happily scored another goal for its owner. "_Nice shot, Shinta. Definitely worthy of my owner. __You could probably try an easier one so as to further humiliate your adversary._"

Lance looked at the score. "15-10? Come on!"

The green-haired boy wasted no time helping Lance back up. "It's a trick Master Guardnia taught me. He was really good at soccer."

The groaning Pegasus Lance put him at odds. It was clear he was growing increasingly frustrated with what he considered a cheap shot, specially because Lance prided himself of being a good movement reader and, thus, a good technique analyzer in battle and goal keeper in sport.

They had gone to a remote spot in the outskirts of Sanctuary Town as to run into less people who would demand to know what happened in Arcadia. Two months had passed, and everyone still kept harassing him over something he did right.

The morning was spent, then, playing penalties against each other, but despite Lance being a better goal keeper, Shinta was a much better shooter due to his training in precision in Andromeda Island as well as his expertise in curved trajectories. "I think your Cloth may be giving you points when no one is looking..." Lance commented.

"I don't think so. I've been keeping an eye on her because I know she would probably try something like that." Shinta then looked at the clothes Lance was wearing. They didn't have any soccer equipment, so they were just playing with what they had on them. "Lance, don't get angry at me, but maybe if you didn't bring such heavy clothes..."

"It's fucking cold today! We're almost at winter, you know?" Shinta kept staring at the thick black jacket, red gloves and red scarf and couldn't help but cringe. The Andromeda Saint was wearing his usual attire and barely felt the late Autumn breeze. As a Saint who can burn cosmos and also spent four years in Mount Olympus, Lance shouldn't be bothered with low temperatures that much. "What the hell are you looking at?!"

"N-nothing!" Shinta gulped in fear. Cold weather really put Lance in a bad mood for some reason. This was probably why he didn't want to cross those tall, snow filled mountains in Yugoslavia when they were heading for Ismara. "D-do you want to go to the MMC? I'm sure they have something for you-I mean, for _us_ to do. Probably somewhere... warmer?"

The Pegasus Saint picked his Cloth Box into his back. "...Sure, that sounds like a good idea."

Happy that he managed to calm the storm, Shinta also picked up his Cloth and followed Lance out of there into town. They would have to go to First Street and, hopefully, they would be able to go somewhere nearer the equator.

As they entered the crowded streets, Shinta saw the foot soldiers patrolling among the population. The people seemed to ignore this, used to the militaristic nature of Sanctuary, but it was always something that stood out in his pacifist view. "Boy, ever since Arcadia, soldiers have been moving around everywhere."

"What did you expect? I'm surprised Holy War wasn't declared."

Shinta quivered. The prospect of Holy War terrified him, though not due to lack of bravery but more because of the all-out brutality it would ensue. "Do you have any idea what happened to that girl called Alexis?" asked Shinta.

Even after all the time it had passed since the Bennu Specter's attack, Shinta would occasionally wonder out loud about the red-haired girl the Pegasus Saint had managed to save. Lance detected genuine preoccupation in his eyes and wished the younger Saint would just move on. "...Probably in some Training Ground, if she's alive, that is. I stand by what I said before that you need to worry less about others. You can't afford to try to control what happens to everyone you meet, you know?"

As he asked this, both Saints passed by a Church of Athena. It was a large, medium-sized chapel styled after the architecture of orthodox christian churches, possessing cupola roofs above the western bell tower and narthex, but lacking christian symbols such as the crosses or mosaics of bible stories and characters. Instead, it had symbols related to Athena, including the eagle of Nike's staff above the large, wooden entrance doors, the small statues of owls in the roof corners and stain glass images of the Goddess acting as windows.

They couldn't see it from where they were due to the closed doors, but inside the church the benches would be filled with people, Saints and soldiers praying to a statue of Athena, identical in shape to the Colossus but much smaller in size, while a priest gave the sermon. While everyone invariably prayed to Athena, the actual temple architecture and religious rituals in Sanctuary had suffered a really profound influence from Christian and Islamic religions because most of Sanctuary's habitats and Saints were of European blood. The stronger presence of people from the Balkans and Southern Europe also meant that Orthodox Christianity and Catholicism had much more of an impact than the Protestant branches.

Despite being Sanctuary's capital, Sanctuary Town's population barely went beyond the five digits, primarily because Sanctuary as a whole was a contained, secret society. As a result, despite the fact that religion was a major issue in the Hellenic theocracy, a network of small or medium sized chapels under the fief of a small clerical class was far more apt than building huge cathedrals headed by complex and powerful religious hierarchies to worship Athena, who preached against prodigality and ostentation.

"Lance, can I tell you something personal... and you won't laugh at it?" This seemed to catch Pegasus' interest. Shinta didn't really like the look on his eyes so he glanced away nervously. "My mom... she's Japanese but she was raised in a christian religion. I don't know why or which one because I was very young when I got separated from her, but... she taught me to pray for people who I cared about everyday and that God would make those people happier." He then pulled out a pendant from underneath his collar. "Even after I learned of Athena, every day, I tried to remember people I met and I always tried to make them fit in my prayers, so I never felt it right to just forget about people or not care about them because I don't see them so much. I don't do it so much nowadays, but-"

"You have a necklace?"

"Hum, I mean, I-"

Lance smirked. "You pray to it?" He grabbed Shinta's hands. "Let me see that."

Shinta pulled away almost instinctively. "NO, I mean..." He calmed himself down and slowly revealed the jewel. "Please don't laugh. It's from my Mom. It's very precious to me."

The pair of red eyes analyzed the object. It was a star shaped pendant connected by the tips with a ring, with which a silver chain held around Shinta's neck. A golden laurel crown was engraved on the star's center above an inscription in equally golden letters. "'Yours Ever'? What is it, English? What does that mean?"

"Oh, my Mom told me that it meant that, even if I was far away, she'd always love me and have me in her heart. This way, even in Andromeda Island, I knew she worried about me and wanted me back."

"UGH!" Lance let go of the pendant. "Shinta, you really need to stop saying such sappy things with a straight face. You'll embarrass yourself. Besides, I was raised in a catholic orphanage in the middle of an orthodox country... Religious differences are not a laughing matter to me." Lance then saw Saint Nam in the street and started heading towards him. "I wouldn't mock you over that but you really shouldn't show that to everyone or saying corny stuff for that matter."

"I don't feel embarrassed about saying it, Lance. I think I just feel embarrassed only when people laugh about it, which is why I'm glad you didn't, because it means I can trust you, _Nissan_." A moment of tense silence followed. Lance rubbed his eyes. "Is everything okay, Nissan- Oh!" He covered his mouth.

Lance groaned. "What the hell do I care? You're just going to keep calling me that more and more, aren't you? You need to be more self-aware. Work on that, okay?"

Since he didn't want to get his partner more frustrated, Shinta just nodded obediently and followed him to the Mission Management Center.

It wasn't necessary to go all the way until the building itself, since Sagitta Nam was crossed by them in the street. ""Saint Nam, we were just heading for the MMC." said Shinta. "Is there any assignment, today?"

The blonde, blue-armored Saint shook his head. "No, but it's a good thing I ran into you guys."

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

Nam ignored Lance and showed Shinta a letter. "I received this today from Andromeda Island. It's from your Master to you."

Shinta gasped and analyzed it, seeing the seal of the Cepheus Cloth's engraving on red wax. "Master Guardnia sent this to me?" He opened it up eagerly and read the content.

_Dear Shinta,_

_How are things? Have you been doing well in Sanctuary? I apologize for writing you this instead of sending a mental message. I hope the MMC didn't deliver you this right before giving you a mission, for I do not wish you to have anything on your mind while at work._

_It's been almost a year since you've graduated and I've heard much of you. Just the other day, Saint Cynthia visited me with a new batch of students for me to educate and told me of how bravely you fought in the Arcadia incident. I was very impressed. But at the same time I am proud of your efforts, I am also sorry that you had to be a part of that massacre. I have read much of it in Sanctuary's newspapers and I know you've probably been pretty shocked with so much destruction._

The Andromeda Saint's attention was fully captured by the words. He hadn't gotten word from his dear Master in ages. Both the Pegasus and Sagitta Saint kept their respectful distances but while Nam was patient enough to let him finish his reading, Lance wasn't so keen on wasting time. "What does he say?"

Shinta kept on reading. "He's saying... that everything is going well in Andromeda Island, too, and that he has new students. He's heard about Arcadia, as well." He finished reading the letter and his smiled beamed widely. "He wants me to visit him at the Island for dinner when I have some spare time! This is great!" He turned to Nam. "Thank you, Saint Sagitta! Uh, do I have to send a letter back to him confirming?"

"Shinta, you don't have time for that, right now! We need to earn salary through missions." reminded Pegasus. "As much as I'd like it, I can't take any regular assignments without you, remember?"

But Shinta protested. "Saint Nam just said there weren't any missions from the MMC, right?...Lance, I'd really like to go." he pleaded.

"Well," Nam said, scratching his head. "It isn't so much that there are no assignments as that Sanctuary just isn't letting anyone go on them for the time being." He saw them widen their eyes. "After the massacre in the border with Hades' land, Bronze Saints have been severely restricted from going on missions for now. The Pope doesn't want to send weaker Saints to where there is trouble until this whole mess with the rogue Specters is dealt with. The most you'll get from us is patrol duty."

"I'm a fucking Silver-rank!" Lance reminded him. "Can't you at least let me do one on my own? If I don't bring Shinta along it should be fine!"

"You're Silver, yes, but your Cloth is not." Nam reminded. "If you're going to Andromeda Island, Shinta, take a Sanctuary ship. It's not safe out there for super-speeders, not with these rogues on the loose. You'll draw too much attention from them." The red-eyed teen folded his arms in frustration and groaned something. "I'll be going now. I have to help the other Silver Saints coordinate their efforts in finding these murderers."

"Take care, Saint Nam." Shinta wished. "And don't mind Lance. He's angry because it's so cold." He got a confused look from the Silver Saint before the blonde man left the scene. Shinta then looked back on the open letter, taking nostalgic pleasure in seeing once more his Master's writing. It had been less than a year, but it felt like it had been forever.

"Well, if you're going there, I guess I'll just take a few days off. It's not like the Pope will let me do solo jobs again-"

"Actually, Lance," Shinta's green eyes kept shifting between the letter and Lance's red ones. "the letter says that I could bring my partner, the Pegasus Saint. You can come with me... Will you come? Master wrote he'd like to meet you."

Pegasus' brow lifted. "What does he want with me?" Shinta shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose I wouldn't mind going. I've been meaning to check out what kind of place Andromeda Island is before I even met you," not to mention that it meant getting away from the whole Arcadia for some time.

A smile of excitement filled Shinta's lips. "Awesome! Thank you, Lance! You won't regret this. Master Guardnia is a wonderful person." Both Bronze Saints kept walking and Lance had to watch as Shinta practically skipping with excitement. After a while he calmed down, though. "I wonder how he's doing. Surely, he must be giving his lessons right now."

"...Was he a good teacher?"

Green eyes glanced at red ones. "Hum, yes. I mean, he was a bit... boring and his lessons were really long, but he taught me a lot of things."

"I see. That must have been nice..."

Shinta blinked and watched Lance maintain his seemingly calm mood. Knowing Lance like he did, something, perhaps in Lance's tone, told the Andromeda Saint that there was more to his words. "_Is he asking this because of Kastiel abandoning him?_" he wondered. Having long learned his lesson about mentioning the Kerberos Saint in Pegasus' presence, Shinta did not try to confirm this. He did, however, soften his gaze. "_That must have been so sad to just be left behind and told you're no good by your own teacher. No wonder Lance doesn't like Kastiel at all._" Shinta corrected the course of his speech. "Well, yes. His lessons were long and boring but I'm _very thankful_ for them." He chuckled nervously when he was given a weird look by his friend.

As they walked across town, the faint sound of people murmuring, gasping and talking excitedly was heard. Lance and Shinta took a turn and found themselves before a crowd of people following an entourage of none other than the Pope himself.

Shinta gasped. "Look, Lance, it's his Holiness!"

They stood away from the crowd and watched as the Holy Father of Sanctuary, surrounded by a group of Papal Guards, walked among the people who called for him, praised him and asked his blessing. Some others in their houses shouted from their windows while others brought their children to see the Pope. Saints in the area, the two partnered Bronze Saints included, kept their respectful distance and some more professional ones even pretended not to notice the commotion, just going on their regular routine and schedules.

Several hands tried to reach out for him between the crossed spears of the Guards, who raised their shields in caution. "Please keep your distance. His Holiness, Pope Arles III, is passing." one advised.

Lance cringed. "Ugh, what a ghastly name he picked for himself. What does it even mean?"

"I'm not sure, Lance. I think the Popes name themselves in Ancient Greek, Atlantean or Old Lemurian at their coronation." said Shinta. "At least that's what Master Guardnia told me. It must mean something important if two other Popes picked it in the past, right? Hey Lance, what would you pick for yourself if you were Pope?" He saw Lance cringing further in disgust and shrugging his shoulders. "Oh, you wouldn't like it? Well, I'm not sure if I would either, but I think I'd just use my real name. It's one of the few things I still have from my Mom. I wouldn't like to hide it, even if I had to conceal who I was as the Pope."

They both watched as the Pope tried to answer as many pleas as he could, giving his hand to touch, his words to bless and sooth souls and even the occasional promise to aid. The people cried for him and kept gathering around more and more so the soldiers asked the Pope to let them escort him out of there before things got out of hand, to which the Pope concurred.

Lance folded his arms. "They really like him, huh?"

"Yeah, I don't understand how those Skeleton Soldiers in Arcadia could say so many mean things about him and Sanctuary." Shinta then recalled a story from his training. "There was this one time in my third year that the farms in Ethiopia that kept my Island fed were going through this really serious drought so the Pope send money and food carts to them and Master Guardnia until it was solved. Isn't that amazing?"

"All I know is that he's been on my case ever since I got my Bronze Cloth. He doesn't like me. Probably doesn't think I should have Pegasus, too. Let's go to the port. We need to find a ship going to the Indian Ocean and book a passage."

As they left the area, Lance's red eyes turned to the corner of the street where he spotted something strange. A pair of normal looking men were keeping their distance from the crowd and eying the whole situation rather intensely. Lance's elbow bumped Shinta's arm to get his attention to it.

Both Saints watched as the two men discussed something in whispers, perhaps pertaining to what the Pope was doing, without taking their eyes off the Pope's entourage. They seemed aggravated by the sight of the Holy Father. They then noticed the two Bronze Saints watching them and it didn't take them long to discretely walk away from the scene.

The Pegasus Bronze Saint squinted in suspicion. "_What the hell? Who were those guys? They seemed from Sanctuary Town..._" he deduced. "_I guess they don't like the Pope, either._"

"Should we do something, Lance?"

"Like what? Interrogate innocent bystanders? I'm not in the mood to get more bad fame. People think I'm violent enough already. Let's just go."

{======================|0|======================}

**The following day**

**North-Western Indian Ocean**

{======================|0|======================}

"Come on! Raise your fists!" one of the watching sailors encouraged.

Shinta hesitated only a bit. Did they really have to be doing this? Lance's intense stare, though, made it impossible for him to protest. He lifted his hands into a defensive stance.

Lance's fist, though, came like a bullet that struck his nose right through his defenses. Shinta stumbled back and tried to keep focus over his bloody nose. He managed to block a second heavy blow with crossed forearms, but an elbow strike coiled afterward, stunning him and opening his guard to flurry of blows that struck is whole body.

Shinta screamed and fell on his back, tired, bruised and beaten. Several of the sailors paid each other, not surprised by the outcome of the fight. Many complained out loud that a Saint, even one as docile looking as Shinta, should have put up a better fight and, better yet, beat the Pegasus. Some offered money to Lance, who stoically counted it as if beating up Andromeda was something he was used to doing everyday.

After he made sure he got his share of the bets, Lance pulled Shinta up. "Couldn't you have at least fight a bit more back? I know chains are your specialty, but they almost thought you threw the match." he berated.

Shinta winced in pain but manned up. He saw Lance's bandaged hands go look over his money one more time. It made him look like a real street fighter. "S-sorry. I don't like fighting, specially for money." Lance seemed to ignore him, focused more on the money they collected. "Hey, Can I ask you something, Lance? Why do you keep your arms and hands bandaged? I mean, you look really cool, but... it's not like you're hurt, right?"

Said hands stopped flipping bills. "...It's a habit."

"Oh," said Shinta. Now that he thought of it, he had never seen Lance without that set of bandage wrappings. He had seen him switch the actual fabric with new ones plenty of times and it was far from unheard of for trainees and Saints to wear wrist wraps in training but no one seemed to make it a part of their style as much as the Pegasus Saint. Shinta had become even accustomed to them, as another icon of Pegasus asides from his red eyes. "Oh, I see. How did you gain it? Was it from training?"

It was then that Lance gave him one of the strangest and most intense glares he's ever given anyone, including to Shinta. The Andromeda Saint gulped and stepped back. Did he ask something _that_ personal?

Whatever the answer, Lance did not seem interested in divulging it. "You know, you could have easily beaten me if you used that cosmos of yours. Probably could have ended the match without a single punch being thrown."

"Lance, I told you, I don't and I shouldn't use that. It's dangerous!" he pleaded.

"Which is why you _should_ use it more often, you wuss. If you're afraid of it, then of course you're never going to control it! Whatever... you want to spar again?" Shinta shook his head frantically. "Boy, you really have no guts!"

"S-sorry, Nissan." he apologized. "I'm not sure I could beat you anyway. You're much better at hand-to-hand than I am. You're like a martial artist!"

Lance shrugged it off. "I'm no martial artist, Shinta. That requires specialized training that I never undertook. Pulling off some flashy moves doesn't make me Bruce Lee. In fact, Pegasus Saints are said to usually fight more like street fighters or boxers than martial artists."

Both Saints moved away from the crowd and looked out to the Ocean. The had departed that morning from a Sanctuary merchant vessel that would go to India through the Suez Channel, a route which, according to Shinta, passed right over Andromeda Island's seas.

"(Is it... going to take... much longer?)" Lance struggled to ask in Japanese.

Shinta beamed up in surprise. "Wow, that was really good! You're getting so much better!"

Lance's eyes shifted. "No, I'm not, It's still hard to order the sentences! I'm so used to the western way and it's tough to pronounce and tell the words apart."

"But that one was so good, Lance. I can tell you're really improving." he praised. During the last couple of months, Lance had utterly shocked Shinta by picking up some of his Japanese words and attempting to learn how to speak it. As expected, the Pegasus Bronze Saint was having a much tougher time than he thought he would, courtesy of the completely different linguistic roots of Greek and Japanese. "You don't have to learn Japanese, though, specially if you're having difficulty."

"It's okay, I kind of like it. It sounds cool when I speak it." Pegasus confessed. "I like it better than learning English, that's for sure..."

"Andromeda Island is..." Shinta then paid attention not to his surroundings, but to the slowly rising temperature and the color of the sea. "It's not very far off. Usually fishing ships stay away from here because it's a bad area."

Lance's red eyes then spotted far off a fishing vessel with a french name leaving the area, probably towards Madagascar. Pegasus noticed how it seemed to have a paw, seemingly of a monkey, drawn next to its French name. He then looked at the water splashing against the boat they were in and didn't notice anything special about it. "What do you mean? Is this a predator area or something?" he asked. He didn't claim to know anything remotely solid about fishing.

"Oh, no, it's the Ring." Shinta saw Lance raise a brow. "The ring of Poseidon. It's a curse that afflicts the waters of Andromeda Island. When we get there, you'll see that there is this 'pollution' in the water, like a gray ring of poison in it. My Master taught me that, when Poseidon was cheated from his sacrifice by Perseus, he was so angry that he cursed the waters of the island."

"Really? That sounds interesting." Lance then looked back at the water. "Poseidon is the God of earthquakes, too, right? Maybe he caused an eruption that expelled toxic materials to the sea. There's probably not anything supernatural about the ring itself."

The gulping sound coming from Shinta's throat and the sudden whitening of his face alerted the Pegasus Saint. "I don't think so, Lance. I've seen the curse in action. A classmate of mine died because he stepped on an urchin that lived in the Island's waters. He thought it was okay and, when Master Guardnia found out... it was too late and he had to mercy kill him." Shinta then shivered and closed his eyes, reliving some nightmare. "The infection was so horrible. Master said that, even if he had been told in time, he would probably have to cut off the limb or undergo a very painful and risky treatment."

Now Lance's interest was piqued. Shinta seemed truly terrified of the curse. "Can you tell me about the island? I've heard it is a level A Training Ground. What's so special about it?"

Shinta recalled that Mount Olympus was considered a B level training Ground. Was Lance trying to compare their trainings. "Well, the curse desolated the island. It caused a rapid change in climate that killed almost everything on it. The people had to leave it behind to go to Sanctuary or to the Atlantean Colonies. It was once filled with forests and grass plains, but now... the terrain is rocky and volcanic. There is a very large area of it that is just dunes of hot sand. The temperature during the day is insane but at night it drops to sub zero ones."

Shinta continued. "There's barely any signs of civilization left, too. Nothing grows on the island because of the infertile terrain and the harsh temperatures. The only ruins that are still standing are all part of the Tests I had to go through. The first thing Master Guardnia would teach us was how we should keep ourselves hydrated at all times. In fact," Shinta then opened his Cloth Box and pulled out a pack of water bottles. "You should keep these inside your Cloth Box, Lance. It will make them stay cool and you'll need water all the time."

Lance stared at them for a second. "That's really thoughtful of you. I'll be fine, though."

Shinta, however, in a rare fit, narrowed his eyes. "I'm serious, Lance! The temperatures on the island are very dangerous. Take these!"

The Pegasus Saint took note of Shinta's fortitude. "I'll ask for them if I need them." His pulse was grabbed and Shinta put the water bottle pack in his hand. "Hey, what the hell-"

Shinta groaned. "Nissan, I'm not kidding, okay?" he insisted. It was his task, appointed by the Master, in Andromeda Island to make sure all his friends had filled stocks of H2O and nothing made him angrier than when water was wasted or ignored by people who didn't take the danger on his Training Ground seriously. "Please, just take them."

Lance sighed and conceded, storing the water inside Pegasus' box. The box, much like the Cloth itself, had powerful defensive properties which included heat protection, so it should keep the water fresh for longer.

"I'm sorry for being stubborn, Lance, but Andromeda Island is said to be the second worst Training Ground. Master Guardnia has always said, though, that it was a blessing compared to the very worst one. He never told me what it was..."

"It's an island in the Pacific. You shouldn't go there, Shinta." Lance warned, surprising the younger Saint by knowing about the place. "It's got its own special rank, not to mention that it is pretty much off-limits for most people."

The Andromeda Saint widened his eyes. He had never heard of a Training Ground with access restrictions. It made him wonder how terrible it really was and, apparently, Lance sounded like he knew more about it than he let on.

Deciding not to pry, Shinta instead turned his eyes to the sea. He brightened up when, at the distance, the tips of two twin volcanoes were spotted. "Look, Lance, we're close to the Island."

"Is that the ring?" Pegasus pointed at the gray that the water was suddenly obtaining. Shinta nodded. "Doesn't look like anything I've seen around volcanic islands and I've visited my share of them."

Almost immediately the two Saints started noticing the steady rise in temperature. They were not very far off from the equator, since Andromeda Island was located not over a thousand kilometers off the coast of Somalia, but they could already tell from the sudden spike of warmth in the air that the Island really messed with its nearby climate.

The boat they were on started shifting to the right so as to head southeast, below the Island and towards India. Lance and Shinta put on their Cloth Boxes and prepared themselves for some island hopping with supersonic speed. Shinta smiled and clasped his hands. "I can't wait to see Master. It's been so long. I wonder how many students he has now."

Lance shrugged. He wasn't looking forward to being a part of a joyful reunion between Shinta and his teacher. He just wanted to get there, find out what the Cepheus Silver Saint wanted with him and get back to Sanctuary. "Let's just go. I don't want to waste more time than necessary."

The two Saints then stepped on the boat's railing and leaped off at super speed.

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At one of the northwestern beach coasts of the large, deserted island, a small basic wooden dock had been built by the residents of the island and it was supposed to house only a boat or two at once. The spot of the island was chosen because most boat routes from Sanctuary came from the Red Sea, which was northwest from the island's standpoint. The two Bronze Saints landed from their supersonic movement on it and entered the island's innards. The sounds of lava rumbling around in the volcano, the sandy wind, the scorching temperature of the sun and the complete lack of life among the dark rocks was their only greeting.

Shinta turned to Lance, who seemed shockingly unconcerned by the climate. Without even putting his Cloth on, the Pegasus Saint seemed unsurprised by the temperature levels and lack of any signs if life around them. For some reason, Shinta felt hurt by this. "Are you sure you don't want to take a drink already? You'll need it, Nissan."

"I'll be fine. This island is very rough, but I've seen worse. Where should we go, Shinta?"

This part excited the Andromeda Saint. "Well, first we should go to the Living Area. It's a part of the island where the huts we lived in are. We landed a bit far from there, though. Master built them as close to the coast as possible without it being too vulnerable to sudden pirate raids. Pirates sometimes pop up because the island is a good middle point between Somalia and Yemen."

Lance chuckled. He could easily tell that Shinta had been looking forward to show off his Training Ground for a while. "Well, lead the way."

The green-haired boy rushed ahead towards a dirt path among the rocks of the harsh terrain that lead up a cliff at the distance where, Lance deduced, should be where the Living Area was.

The Andromeda Cloth in Shinta's back opened it's lid and looked around with its spear-tip chain. "_My home, my kingdom! It's so good to be back!_" It then noticed the Pegasus Saint. "_Now, if only I could get rid of this one..._" It then had an idea. "_Shinta, can I go see Mother's Labyrinth first? I want to... reunite with my fellow Cloths._" This last sentence took some effort from her part since she had nothing but distaste for the Cloths not connected to her myth but that, for some reason, where kept by Cepheus Guardnia. "_I sense my father there and I want to go see him._" she lied. She could then just tell them that Guardnia had left the area once Pegasus got lost inside mother's maze.

Lance saw Shinta stopping. "What is it?"

"Oh, hmm... Andromeda says she wants to take a detour. She wants to go to Cassiopeia's Labyrinth. It's a Test located at the north end of the island. It's where Master keeps most of the Cloths that are in his possession. She says she senses Master there." Pegasus shrugged his shoulders. "We should be close since we landed at the Northwestern area. It has a passage that goes through one of the volcano undergrounds that should give us a shortcut to the Living Area, but... No, it's dangerous. We'll just try to meet with Master there and then go to the Living Area, okay?"

"Whatever, you're the boss."

Shinta felt a boost of confidence with Lance's trust vote. He wished he could have them explore the Island more so as to show Pegasus more of where he spent his childhood in, but Master was waiting for them. They dashed at super speed towards the northern part of the island.

While Shinta tried to guide them through shady areas and smoother parts of the terrain, ever time he looked back Lance, for someone facing Andromeda Island's dangers for the first time, seemed to have very little difficulty against the heat and roughness of the island, as if he had truly faced something worse in the past. This bummed Shinta out a bit because he really wanted to take the chance to impress Lance with the harshness of his training Ground.

The Northernmost part of the island was one of the many spots of it that were desert-like, though this particular one was still a very rocky one and not the full out sandy one that was the East part. Upon arrival at their destination, they still had to slow down because the erratic cliffs and sandy rock floors made moving big distances at super-speed a reckless choice.

They stopped before the entrance of the Labyrinth and for the first time since the got there, Lance was visibly in awe. Before them, sprouting out of the base of one of the two volcanoes, stood a massive, cliff-like rock structure with a ten-foot cavern entrance in front of the two Saints. Said cavern was sided to the right by equally tall carving of a regally-dressed woman with a lying chair and to the left by one of the Andromeda Princess with chains moving around her body.

There was a greater amount of sand coming out from the cavern's floor than in the rest of the area, but it was a dark brown one akin to what Lance would find at Sanctuary's Coliseum. Both Saints widened their eyes in shock, though, when they spotted what appeared to be a man in black armor lying on the floor, dead and with blood gushing on from beneath his body.

The both rushed to the scene and analyzed him. His armor was shaped like a skeleton and a shattered scythe lied on the ground next to his hand. Shinta's face went pale. "W-what? A Skeleton Soldier?! What is he doing here?"

Lance, also in shock, turned the man over and analyzed his wound. He had been slashed across the chest and there were marks of chains pressed against his skin in some spots uncovered by armor. It sounded like the recent work of an Andromeda Islander. "The island is under attack..."

Shinta then spotted something that aggravated the situation even further. "Oh, no! The Cloths!" Shinta rushed over to what seemed to be several cube-like slots beneath the images of Cassiopeia. A rock covering seemed to have been removed from them. "Someone took the Cloths that Master Guardnia kept in store here."

Lance immediately pulled the chain of his Cloth box, causing it to open up and adorn Lance in his white armor. "Shinta, put on your armor. There are Specters here-"

"AAGHHHH...!"

Both Saints went silent and turned towards the dark, cavern entrance of Cassiopeia's Labyrinth. The chilling screamed seemed to have come from deep inside. "T-that voice... MASTER!" Shinta put on his armor with but a pull of the chain of his Cloth Box and rushed inside the cave. "I'm coming!"

"NO, SHINTA, DON'T! Damn it!" Lance tried to stop him from entering what was obviously a trap. The kid did not listen, though, and Lance had no choice but to also rush inside.

After the two Saints disappeared inside the dark entrance, several shadows move around the rocks, watching the whole scene. The many Skeleton soldiers that had spotted the Saints and stalked them to that area slowly followed them inside, scythes and swords in hand.

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Andromeda in Chains, part 2 of 2

**Release Date**: September 21, 2014

**Description**: While searching for Shinta's Master inside the volcanic maze that is the labyrinth of Cassiopeia, Shinta and Lance come across a powerful adversary

_Author's note: Much of what is in this chapter about Andromeda Island comes from the Love You Kill Me fanfiction, but you do not need to read it for I will try my best to depict the island without making the details of it vital to the story. The old readers should already know where the next chapter will go. While I intend to revamp this storyline, it should not got much further beyond in it's core relevance than the original version did._


	10. 1A: Andromeda In Chains Part 2 of 2

**N****otable OCs up until**** now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; MMC; Sanctuary Forts and Outposts

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests

Author Notes:

_Please enjoy and review._

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_"____There has been little progress both in motivating Shinta to fight more aggressively in his spars and in finding a way to help him unlock his cosmos. Unlike with unlocking the 7____th____ sense, there are a few standard tricks to help a student burn his cosmos for the first time, but all of my current second years are already using it while Shinta still hasn't unlocked it. It is vital that trainees work on unlocking cosmos while as young as possible. The more time is wasted on this, the tougher it will be for Shinta to accomplish this task._

___I've asked Saint Cynthia for advice. I dislike resorting to her for help both because I do not desire to intrude in her mission-filled schedule and also because her experience in teaching is limited to training graduated soldiers, not children trainees. ____I've even consider____ed____ asking Kastiel, of all people, for his two cents, but he could not even handle a single trouble student in a B-Rank training ground. Athena knows I've done bad things, but I refuse to take teaching advice from someone who abandons kids in mountains._

___I fear for the boy's fate. Shinta's frustration and sense of helplessness has been growing with each failure to break a rock, which means the odds of him failing his next False Freedom Test will keep increasing for as long as he's stuck. Cynthia answered me to have faith in my capabilities. She tells me that I'm a good teacher and that Shinta's cosmos, as hard as it is to tap into, probably is something really special._

___I wish she is right...on both accounts."_

-Cepheus Guardnia's notes on the 96th Week of Shinta Akiyama's Path of the Cloth

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Lance, already clad in most of his armor, rushed inside the dark, fuming cavern that lead inside what Shinta had described before as one of the tests he undertook as a trainee to the Path of the Andromeda Cloth. The dark, Colosseum sand beneath his feet was slowly replaced by black, sandy rock ground and temperatures started increasing dramatically. The scents of blood and sulfur also popped up. He slowed down and tried to focus on the small emanation of Shinta's energy that his locked sense of cosmos could pick up.

He found himself in a descent into the island's volcanic caverns. The area was dark, barely illuminated by the orange light at the end of the tunnel, probably from lava streams and veins coming from the two volcanoes Lance saw in the surface. He could just make out enough of what was ahead of him to not trip or hit any walls, but a creeping sensation started settling inside him.

The Pegasus Saint had been in volcanic islands before. He knew the dangers of them. He kept his head below the fumes moving through the low ceiling and paid attention to the ground for cracks, vapor emanations and the sort. Lava tubes such as the one he was in were formed by gas, not magma, and the danger alone of it being connected to a pair of active volcanoes put him on guard.

There was something not right about this cave, though. As he progressed inside, the lighting from the far off lava allowed him to detect more details on the walls. There were sections of it that looked more like ruined walls integrated into the rock, as if the whole passage was partially artificial. Amidst the noise of rumbling lava at the distance, he could swear he also made out whispers and the vague scent of blood was sickening.

He stopped in his tracks when he realized that the cavern's walls were also filled with faint marks of strange letters, most engraved on the rock but some were written in dry blood. He could not read any of the text. It seemed akin to Ancient Greek, but while the differences between modern and ancient Greek were mostly phonetic, the Bronze Saint could barely make out anything that was written. Some words like 'labyrinth' and some names like 'Poseidon' were clear, but the rest seemed like some sort of very deviant Greek. He imagined it was probably left by the inhabitants of the island.

Lance then saw Shinta, who had stopped in a spot where the cavern split into two different ways, one going upward and another going deeper into the network, probably where the so called labyrinth started."God damn it, Shinta! What the hell is the matter with you? We have to keep it cool!" he whispered as harshly as he could.

Shinta took a bit to react. It seemed like he had stopped because he realized the place he had rushed inside so recklessly. "I... Oh, no, you're right. I'm sorry, Lance, what have I done? This place is dangerous."

There was a small volcanic tremor, as if to drive Shinta's realization home. Lance looked at both paths before him. The one leading downwards to the right emanated the most heat and he could see at it's depth the light of lava streams. The one leading upwards to the left seemed much safer. Due to the mostly rocky ground of the cavern, footsteps were a lot fainter but specs of blood were more visible than in the sand. Lance spotted red drops staining the rocks to the path upwards.

"It's okay, you just got worried about your Master. We'll try to find him, alright?" he waited until Shinta calmed down enough to nod in accordance. "It seems like the scream came from deep inside this place. The Skeleton Soldier outside seems to suggest that your Master either caught someone infiltrating the cavern or Cepheus escaped inside this place and was followed by the Specters. What do you think, Shinta? You know this test."

Shinta took a deep breath. The calmness in Lance's voice as he analyzed situations always helped him feel like things were under control. He wasn't sure what was going on yet, but he would not let urgency get the best of him like in Arcadia. "Well, I... I think it's the latter possibility. He said in his letter he had new students. If he wanted to protect them from Specters, he'd guide them safely through this place."

Lance put down his Cloth Area box and started putting on the armor. "Why would he choose to go through here?"

"The labyrinth closes off cosmos signals and mental messages from the outside so he could lose the Specters and maybe get them lost in the Maze." Shinta explained "If we go deeper inside, we should pick him up... It leads beneath the volcanoes. It makes sense to me that in a Specter emergency he would take his students through these caves." He then pointed at the two ways. "The labyrinth starts at the right one. I don't think the Master would go that way. I think he would go left because, instead of the labyrinth which would be dangerous for the students, it takes to an upward cavern path to one of the volcanoes. From there he could exit to the Living Area."

"I see, so he's trying to make the Specters go through these paths?" Lance finished tying his forearms guards and then looked down, searching for anything like footprints or other hints that could corroborate Shinta's theory. He narrowed his eyes when he detected boot prints.

Shinta also saw them. They looked a lot like the ones he had seen in the ruined Ismara outpost. "_I can't believe this is happening again... and in Andromeda Island, too. Is Master alright?_" he wondered.

Lance's finger followed them but he discovered that they went down both paths. An interesting detail was that most of them went the path upwards while only two pairs of boots went downwards. "Do you think this place would kill a couple of them?"

Shinta nodded immediately as he also started putting on his armor. "Definitely. I had to use a special mask to know where to go in the labyrinth or I'd die in the lava."

Lance finished his preparation by putting on the horse helmet. More and more as he looked around and as Shinta told him of the place they were in, the test of Cassiopeia's Labyrinth seemed creepier and creepier. The sensation that he kept smelling blood and hearing strange whispers didn't help, either. At first he wondered why Shinta's Master, knowing the island so well, would be afraid of guiding his students through the Maze but now Lance thought that maybe Silver Saint Guardnia had a point in not taking that chance.

Both Saints gave each other a reassuring nod and Shinta took the lead to the left path that lead to the innards of the north-westernmost volcano. The passage was narrower and steep and the ground rose up so much that Pegasus could almost touch it with his fingers without leaning. As they rose higher and higher, the ground also seemed to become hotter. There was little doubt that they were approaching the core of a volcano but it was better than going through a maze right underneath it.

After a bit, they reached a spot where the floor spiked upwards, almost into a wall, but leading to a cavern turn of leveled ground. Shinta tossed his offensive chain which pierced a wall beyond that turn and used it to climb these last few meters. He then gave Lance a helping hand to get him up as well.

Lance dusted himself after crawling out of the whole. They were in a passage within the volcano. The right wall had several tears from where they could see the magma filled core of the main hollow section of the mountain. If they looked up through said crevices, they could also see the smoke rising out through the mouth of the volcano. The temperature was off the chart and some of the smoke seemed to be filling their passage through the tears. They moved carefully along the corridor so as to find a way into the innards.

As they did this, a doubt entered Lance's mind. "Shinta, what was that maze, anyway? What is it doing beneath a volcano?"

Shinta recalled his history class. "Well,... myth talks about the sacrifice but doesn't really tell you what happened to the kingdom because of it. The whole incident with Andromeda's sacrifice caused a lot of upheaval in the island. The King hid the Queen in the maze to protect her from Poseidon, but... well, the people weren't happy with Poseidon's curse and blamed the monarchs for it and they... found out where the Queen was."

"Oh, so it was like a 'Bastille' incident?...Wait, they were so angry they chased after the king's wife through a lava-filled, underground maze?"

"Back then the maze was at the surface, Lance. The climate change, eruptions and earthquakes that struck the island after the curse caused most of the maze to collapse and be buried during the riots, integrating it into the magma caves. There was even a legend that the Queen is still down there at the maze, punishing the islanders who chased after her and trying to find a way out, even though her spirit is now a constellation and you can talk to her through her Silver Cloth." Shinta shivered as he was about to turn to the entrance of the volcano's innards. "The maze is a really creepy place. I almost- AGH!"

Shinta's scream, caused by Lance's hand grabbing him, was also muffled by it as he was suddenly pulled back against the corridor's wall by Lance, who then laid them both down and gestured Shinta to be quiet. His red eyes nervously looked over the corner.

Walking along a stone bridge which went over the massive magma pool that was the volcano's core, was a huge man clad in black armor carrying a pair of Bronze Cloth Boxes. He wore a black helmet with long, curved, purple horns and a golden bull nose on the forehead plate and a second pair of horn-like protrusions sprouting from the cheek guards. His round shoulder pads curved downwards, his torso armor was reinforced in the breast areas, his waist was enveloped in a segmented metal guard and his long greaves and forearm guards had spikes coming out of them.

Lance had spotted him preemptively thanks to the crevices in the passage that oversaw the volcano's innards and immediately identified him as the Minotauros Specter, also known as the Celestial Star of Imprisonment. Shinta saw Lance sweating bullets despite the calm look on his face and realized how serious the situation was.

The Specter did not seem to have heard them talking or seen them walking along the passage despite the crevices. When he turned his back on where the Saints were, Lance relaxed his grip on Shinta's mouth, having enough trust in his partner to know Shinta wouldn't do anything rash. Both Saints carefully watched as the Specter looked around the volcano for something.

"Looks like we were right. This is a Specter attack." Lance concluded. He spotted blood on the side of Minotauros' arm. "He's probably the one that made your Master scream earlier, too."

"Is he looking for more cloths?" Shinta whispered. "He probably wants to destroy them. We gotta stop him!"

Lance wasn't so anxious. "If he's a Celestial Star, that means he should be a gold rank. I don't know exactly what's so special about that rank in particular, but I've heard the difference between it and silver is massive. After the tough time we had bringing Bennu down, we need to think things through if we're going to take this one out."

"But we have to do something, right?"

Lance narrowed his eyes at the distracted Specter. The blood on his arm and the fact he was just walking around despite Shinta's Master being on the island told Lance that the Specters must have already dealt with Cepheus. He kept that conclusion to himself. "...We've practiced working together to take down foes, but this one... needs special procedures."

Shinta looked at the bridge. "I have an idea, Nissan."

**{======================|0|======================}**

Minotauros Guen walked along the rocky bridge passing high above the lava core of the volcano. In his left hand he carried by the straps the Cloth boxes of Bootes and Camelopardalis. He had no idea why these two Cloths, so unassociated with the myth of Andromeda, were doing on that island. He assumed that the Cepheus Saint was trusted with them by the Pope.

Regardless of the reason of their presence, their group was to take every Cloth they could find. Guen was not intent on disappointing their Lord. "_Maia must have already dealt with that meddling Silver Saint. I wounded him pretty bad, but the bastard slipped our sight. I wish I could contact the others, specially after the blunder that it was to try to chase the Saint through that weird Labyrinth in the caverns, but there is something weird about this volcano that is blocking off mental messages._" His eyes, shadowed by his helmet, looked around for potential threats or Cloth hiding places. It had been easy to detect the cosmos of the ones hiding at the entrance of the caverns, but they've had little luck finding more since. "_The barrier our Lord lent us is active around the island to prevent the Gold Saints in Sanctuary from detecting our attack, but we should be able to communicate with each other within the Andromeda Island's premises, yet I can't contact the others right now... I suppose this volcano is more 'alive' than it seems._"

Unbeknownst to him, at the end of the bridge he was walking away from, Andromeda Shinta and Pegasus Lance quietly climbed underneath the rock passage to a rough part of the volcano's inner walls they could hold on to. They took their time, always keeping an eye on the Specter and another on what they were doing. Once under the bridge, Shinta made his move.

He thrust his hand forward, launching his offensive chain across the lava chasm, controlling both its speed and flight trajectory. He waited until the volcano rumbled loudly with it's bubbling lava and small tremors before he made his chain pierce the rock underneath the far end of the bridge, thus disguising the sound of metal striking stone and creating something Lance could use to move to the other side right beneath the Specter's feet.

The Pegasus Saint promptly did so, grabbing the chain and using it to move across the dangerous lava pool. He made an effort not to look down and to ignore the burning heat of lava flaring up to his dangling feet. Once he reached the other side, he held on to the rough wall, unhooked the chain and tossed it back to Shinta.

Both were dead quiet, having surrounded the Specter from underneath the bridge without Minotauros noticing, and waited for the opportune moment to strike. The moment came when Minotauros put down the Cloth Boxes and paused to take a moment to think.

Pegasus Lance grabbed the bridge's edge and used it to launch himself in the air towards the Specter. "**Pegasus Charge Fist!**"

Minotauros turned around, startled, and only saw something white blur straight at him and crash a powerful bullet punch straight in the thinnest part of his chest plate.

The Specter screamed and stumbled backwards.

Shinta took his cue, charged his fist with pink cosmos and punched his end of the bridge as hard a she could, shattering rock and destabilizing the bridge. He then jumped high in the air and launched his chain downwards. "**Great Capture!**" Both his chains twirling around while descending on the victim, picking the two large horns of the tightly worn helmet of the Specter to wrap around. He twisted around in the air before descending on Lance, causing the chains to tighten and pull the Specter's head downwards to the ground.

The enormous man crashed head first on the floor, smashing his helmet straight on the bridge and feeling the vibrations course through his head, stunning him. Lance then rushed at him, grabbed the two Cloth boxes by the straps, struck the Specter with a dive kick that shot him back and tossed the Cloths to Shinta. Finally, he charged cosmos into his foot. "**PEGASUS!**" It came down immersed in white light on the ground. "**CHARGE FIST!**" The impact was tremendous, blasting through the top of the bridge and shattering it. Lance pulled back and watched together with Shinta as the end that the Andromeda Saint damaged also gave in, causing the half of the bridge the stunned Specter was kicked into to fall off its supports and down into the volcanic chasm.

"We did it!" celebrated Shinta. He high-fived Lance and watched, only a tiny bit bothered by his pacifism, as the dangerous Specter recovered his senses just in time to notice himself descending toward lava.

Guen saw the bright orange light fill his eyes as he fell. His right, blood-soaked arm was filled with purple cosmos. He then brought it down on the molten rock just as he was about to hit it. "**Grand Axe Crusher!**"

Shinta and Lance backed off when there was a bright burst of purple light and the sudden sound of liquid bursting upwards. The Saints backed off and covered their faces when geysers of lava shot upwards towards the ceiling. Lance's red eyes widened in horror. "_What?! He cut the lava pool in two?!_"

Something leaped from below and plummeted right in front of them, raising volcanic ash and dust into the air. The lava geysers kept on roaring and surging upwards as the shadow of the minotaur swallowed the two Saints.

Guen scoffed. "Pathetic Saints. You will not leave this island alive!" His arm was then raised and slashed in their direction.

Lance rushed to Shinta and covered him with a blocking stance. They were both run over by light and crushed against the wall.

{======================| 0 |======================}

**Chapter 10**

**First Arc**

**Episode 6**

**Andromeda in Chains**

**Part 2 of 2**

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There was an excruciating second in which both Saints felt themselves crushed straight through the thick, black volcanic walls until the wave of energy that ran them over blasted them outside. They screamed in pain and fell down the mountainside amongst tons of rock and debris.

Shinta felt himself rolling down the mountain, his body screaming in pain and his Bronze Cloth taking the blunt of several impacts for him as he hit boulders and irregular rock formations that littered the volcano's side. He finally felt himself stopping at the step of the mountain and blacked out for a second.

The Andromeda Saint struggled to open his eyes. For a bit, all he could see was a trembling world filled with black dust and sand. He tried to move but his body hurt all over. The sound of Cloth cracking was heard as he raised his head and got to his hand."N-Nissan, we're outside. A-are you okay?" He then gasped. "LANCE!"

The Pegasus Saint was in terrible shape. Having taken the blunt of Minotauros' attack, his Cloth was very badly damaged, sporting nasty cracks in every piece and soaked with blood from its owner it failed to contain. Lance coughed repeatedly and tried to get up, only to fail miserably.

Shinta managed to get up and tried t help him. He looked over his friend and saw a large deep cut across the single plate he had protecting his chest and on both forearm guards. "Oh n-no, Lance! It's okay, I'll help you." Shinta grabbed his friend and lifted him up. He saw the Pegasus cough out blood several times. "W-why did you do that? You could have killed yourself!"

"...N-no time to...a-argue about that!" His red orbs looked up. "He's coming!"

Something large and clad in black armor crashed on the floor right in front of them, having leaped from the new hole in the volcano he blasted the Saints through. Minotauros Guen folded his arms and looked down on his two opponents. "You survived?... Hm, I suppose that's what happens when I use an unfocused Grand Axe to swat two flies at once."

Both Saints stepped back and raised their guards. The Specter was so tall he could practically block out the sun. Lance winced and grabbed his arm. Shinta gasped. "I-I'm fine, Shinta! Focus on your enemy!"

"_What do we do, Lance?_" Shinta asked, via mental message.

Weighing his options, the Pegasus Saint realized they were in serious danger. "_He's a lot stronger than Bennu Yakos, I'll give him that. If the other Specters get here, we're in big trouble... Shinta, we're pulling back!_"

"_What?!_"

"_We're way over our heads. We can't handle this foe. We'll find a distraction, escape his sight and contact Sanctuary. Hopefully, they'll send a Gold Rank to help us. We need reinforcements urgently._"

"_But, Lance, what about my Master and his students?! We can't leave them here!_"

Lance groaned. "_There's little choice in the matter!_"

The Specter, however, seemed to have guessed their thoughts. His raised his arms once more, and the two Saints instantly raised their arms in preparation. Guen swiped the air with it and there was a shock wave burst on the floor that went around the two Saints in a large radius, cutting apart the floor surrounding them.

Dust clouds raised by the sudden attack filled the area. "If you think you can flee from us, you have another thing coming. Our mission is a delicate one and I will not allow two runaway rats to mess up our plans." he threatened. "Curse your luck, Saints. You will meet your end at the Axe of Minotauros Guen!"

Once the dust settled, the two Saints found themselves now standing in a large makeshift platform surrounded by fissures caused by the Specter's attack, serving as a warning they could not escape. The volcano rumbled and the clouds darkened. The Specter's cosmos burned in the form of a purple aura of energy.

Both Saints stepped away from the Specter. Lance quivered in pain. "S-Shinta, get out of here now!"

"NO! I'm not leaving you here, either, Lance! You're hurt."

"Even with an unfocused attack, I'm surprised you survived, Pegasus." admitted Minotauros. "But my next attack will cut you in half. I also won't forget about you, Andromeda. That little stunt you pulled at the volcano of smashing my head on the floor left...quite the impression."

Shinta did not relent. "What did you do to my Master? What do you want from this island?!"

Guen seemed like he was going to answer, but something behind the Saints got his attention. "Comrades, you're here."

The Saints widened their eyes and turned to the side to see a large platoon of Skeleton Soldiers arriving on the scene. They were lead by the Gorgon Specter, a men of simple, dark colored armor, horned helmet that covered his mouth with a metal plate and shadowed his eyes and a full body, slender protection that left only the fingertips out the open.

Gorgon looked at his comrade. "What is this? Saint reinforcements?"

"They ambushed me in the volcano, but they bit off more than they could chew." answered Guen.

The Gorgon Specter raised his hand at his men, gesturing them to assume a formation. Most of his soldiers were crossbowmen sporting bolts dripped in transparent poisonous liquid meant to weaken Saints. "Nasty little rats! I, Gorgon Pell, will make sure you pay for interfering in our attack."

Guen then turned to the other side, to a third Specter that arrived on the scene. "Maia, you're here too already?"

As if the situation couldn't get any worse, the two Saints turned around to see yet another Specter, this one wearing a Surplice of large, pointy shoulder pads curving upwards, long, segmented arm and leg protections with horns at the upper ends and a tight torso armor of wide collar guard and plated front. A pair of medium sized wings seemed to hang down his back from the shoulder pads and his helmet was adorned with several horns curved around his head, a beak going down to the nose from the eyed forehead plate and a thin chin protection.

This Specter seemed the most powerful of the three, even more than Minotauros, as he emitted a thicker aura of dark purple energy that suffocated the atmosphere with its presence. The green eyed Basilisk Maia looked over the situation. "I received your mental message to come here. Did you find more Cloths?"

"Not before these two arrived." answered Minotauros. "What happened to the Silver Saint?"

"He headed towards the desert in the East, hoping to lose me or lure me to a trap. He won't last long, wounded as he was."

"What did you do to him?!" Shinta demanded to know.

The Gorgon Specter turned to Basilisk Maia. "Brothers, we should eliminate these two Saints as quickly as possible. Our Lord awaits us."

The Minotauros Specter nodded. "I concur. After Yakos' fiasco, we can't allow ourselves to stick around for a Gold Saint to show up." He charged his arm with energy once more. "I will deal with them.

Shinta took a protective stance next to the wounded Lance as the large Specter approached. Lance's red eyes turned left and right, trying to find an opened, but the Specters had them surrounded and pinned down. What were they going to do? "S-Shinta, we'll use _that_ combo!"

Shinta nodded. "Sure! Go, **Defen****s****e Circle**!" The Andromeda's Saint tossed his chains around himself. The two chains hit the floor and rapidly slithered around the two of them in circles, creating a ritualistic whirlpool of protective metal links. The Specters kept their distance. "Stay back! Anyone who steps inside this circle of chains will be defeated!"

Laughter from the Skeleton Soldiers filled the area. Lance struggled to stay on his feet, but saw his chance in the mocking footmen. Gorgon's side seemed the weakest. If they focused their counterattacks on his platoon while keeping an eye on the other two Specters, there should be a chance to create an escape point.

"_Damn these Saints!_" complained Gorgon Pell. "_Everything was going so smoothly! If a Gold Saint picks up our cosmos here our plan is ruined!_"

Basilisk Maia analyzed things thoroughly. "_Calm down, brother. I don't think these two came here expecting a battle. I think they only brought their armors as a precaution after all the destruction Yakos and Kairos caused in Germany._" He saw Pell and Guen's eyes asking him what to do. "_We'll just finish these off, go after Cepheus and then escape with the Cloths._"

"_Cepheus killed many of our brothers._" Gorgon complained. "_I want him dead!_"

"_He will be, but for now, we'll handle these two._"

Gorgon signaled to the crossbowmen in his platoon to take aim. "Fire!"

The sound of strings shooting bolts was heard and a barrage of poison-tipped arrows flew straight at the Saints. Shinta's chains, however, exploded in reaction, shooting upwards in spiraling faction so as to create the usual pillar of moving chains that easily repelled the bolts.

The crossbowmen lowered their weapons and look in distraught at the sight of their felled missiles clink around on the floor. Shinta preyed on their shock. "**NEBULA CHAIN!**" The defensive chain fell once more to the floor but the offensive one shoot straight towards the platoon, striking it with an electrified, spear pointed attack.

Gorgon dodged the thrust but his crossbowmen were hit square on by the metal shattering attack, killing and stunning several of them before the chain retreated back into the circle. Gorgon Pell saw half of his crossbowmen on the ground. "Fucking Saint!"

"Enough of this!" protested Guen, the Minotaur. He advanced on the two Saints with raised arm. "We have much to do. I'm getting rid of these chains, and these two, right now!" His aura exploded and the two Saints widened their eyes at the sight of the Specter's large body overlapping with the faint image of a roaring minotaur. The horns of his helmet matched the position and shape of the illusion beast and his arm seemed to be immersed in the cosmos drown, blood soaked axe of the creature.

Basilisk Maia saw Pegasus smirking. "NO, YOU FOOL! He's seen through your attack."

Minotauros ignored Maia and charged straight at the Saint formation, raising his hand high in the air in a chop stance. "No weapon can withstand my attack! **GRAND AXE CRUSHER!**" The huge, black, double edged axe descended on the chain links, ready to shatter ground and metal.

"**PEGASUS CHARGE FIST!**"

As soon as Guen's arm came within an inch of the chains, something fast, compressed and wrapped in white came rushing out of the circle's innards and struck Guen's weakened chest plate with a powerful concentrated blow, stopping his attack straight in its tracks and forcing a scream out of the man's shocked face. The weakened Specter still tried to swipe the Bronze Saint, but Lance easily read his pained body's slowed movement, dodged the blow and struck the black armored waist as hard as he could, kicking the Minotaur away from the circle to the floor.

Lance immediately pulled back inside the formation and Minotauros grabbed his throbbing chest, feeling a shallow, fist-shaped compression on the metal. Maia rushed to his side and helped him up. "Idiot! I told you not to attack like that! Do you have any brains?! You're not supposed to go at them with the same move again! Either kill them with the first one or let someone else take care of the job!"

The two Bronze Saints exchanged smirks, seeing a chance to overcome their situation. Their formation was simple; the Andromeda Chains would encircle them, creating a powerful trap of electric reaction attacks against any foe that would try to approach them while also covering for projectiles and long range attacks with Rolling Defense. If any foe tried to take out the chains themselves with a powerful, heavy attack, like the Minotauros Specter just tried to do, Lance would take him out with his lightning fast Charge Fist, which was most suited for pining the opponents by the openings they create.

It was an emergency strategy that combined their techniques to increase their defensive capacity exponentially by covering each others' weaknesses, with the exception that it turned the two of them into sitting ducks.

Once more, perhaps do the sudden strain his attack put on him, Lance found himself quivering in pain and falling to his knees.

Shinta tried to help him. "L-Lance, are you alright?" Lance nodded, but somehow Shinta could tell he was lying. Minotauros' attack hit Lance pretty bad at the volcano. It was a miracle his Cloth hadn't shattered to pieces. This was why their 'Circle Defense-Charge Fist' combo wasn't going to see them through. If Lance wasn't strong enough to execute several successive Charge Fists, the three Specters would eventually break through their defense.

Lance shoved him away and got up. He started burning his white energy. "W-we can't afford to stay here forever." He kept on pushing his cosmos until it started to seem like it was changing color. He eyed the Basilisk Specter. "If you think you can take us out, go ahead!" he provoked.

Guen saw Maia eye Pegasus back. "You're going to fall for his taunts, too?"

Basilisk ignored his comrade and stayed focused on Pegasus. "_They're either trying to buy time with that defense for the Gold Saints to notice what's going on or push us into using a reckless attack that will create openings they can take._"

"_Maia, the barrier our Lord lend us to cover the cosmos emanating from this island won't last much longer._" Gorgon reminded him. "_We need to take them out fast!_"

Basilisk cracked his fists and charged his cosmos, immersing himself in purple energy that ran up his fingers. "You talk big game, Pegasus. Tell me something, was it you who killed Bennu Yakos?"

Shinta widened his eyes and Lance narrowed his. "...I took part in it. I o-only killed the Shaman."

The Andromeda Saint interfered. "Did you know those two?"

"Of course I did. We were brothers in arms." said Maia. "Of course, though, we did not fall from sanity quite as deep as Yakos had."

In a rare fit of anger, Shinta shouted. "Your comrade slaughtered hundreds of people! If we hadn't stopped him-"

"Then we would have." interrupted Maia, shocking the two Saints. "Yakos was strong in cosmos but not in...spirit. His rampage across Germany was but a childish tantrum he threw because he couldn't handle the truth. Quite frankly, I'm glad he's dead!"

Shinta stared at Maia in shock. "How can you say that?!"

Maia squinted. "You just called him a murderer and now you berate me for rejoicing in his death?... Let me guess, you think that, as his comrade, I should 'defend his honor'?" Shinta only reacted in the form of a surprised look. "Figures. From a society that has just gone through a Civil War not much more than a decade ago, you Saints are awfully judgmental about fraternity."

"W-what 'truth'?" Lance's weak voice asked, not interested in prolonging Shinta's idealistic outrage. "Y-Yakos also went on and on about something w-weird like that. What the hell is going on with y-you Specters?"

The Basilisk Specter did not seem interested in exploring that matter any further. "...I think it's about time I finish you off, Pegasus. I wonder how long your partner is going to last without you." His cosmos seemed to be finished charging, as the purple in it seemed to darken very intensely all of a sudden and the wings hanging from his shoulder guards suddenly stood up high in the air. "**BASILISK!**" He then focused the cosmos around his fist and punched forward at the Saints. "**ANNIHILATION FLAP!**"

A huge blast of air current was fired from his knuckles, aimed straight at the Saints. Shinta took this as his cue to action. "**ROLLING DEFENSE!**" he yelled a she pulled his defensive chain.

Just as expected, the chains shoot upwards before falling down into a pillar of twirling metal links, creating a barrier between the Saints and the attack. The air blast crashed against the rapidly moving protection and the currents were easily flapped away.

However, while the Pegasus Saint took solace in the fact that the attack was being successfully repelled, he also saw Maia adamant in keeping the attack going. The Specter controlled the flow of his cosmos so as to maintain the technique without burning himself out, but this did not seem to have any effect on their defense. "Is he trying to exhaust Shinta's cosmos by forcing him to keep up the Rolling Defense?" Lance wondered. "No, that can't be! That would take too long and those guys want to get out of here before the Gold Saints can pick us up."

Shinta gulped in effort and struggled to keep the defense up. Andromeda wasn't greedy with cosmos, but the way the Specter insisted on keeping the pressure on worried him. "What are they doing? Is he trying to create an opening for his comrade?"

Lance winced in pain and saw the world trembling. He tried to stay focused. "Why is he insisting? The air currents look too strong to not to interfere with a combined attack." Lance felt his body grow weaker with the blood loss. "D-damn it, that Axe attack hit me much harder than I thought." He struggled to keep his eyes on the Specter. He also saw Andromeda wavering a bit. "Is Shinta getting tired already? He should be able to keep the defense up longer than this." Lance's red eyes then widened in horror when he saw Maia smirking while keeping up the attack. "SHIT! Shinta, lower the chains!"

"W-what? Lance, are you sure?" The Andromeda Saint then also started seeing the world tremble and go darker, not to mention a sick, burning sensation filling his stomach and lungs. He coughed.

"Something's getting through the chains in the wind. He's poisoning us, Shinta! He'll kill us if you don't lower your chains." Lance started burning his cosmos to the max. He focused on making his energy swirl around like a dancing flame until it started changing color from white to flame. "LOWER IT NOW!"

Seeing little sense in the strategy, Shinta hesitated, but trusted that Lance knew what he was doing. "O-Okay!"

Lance saw the Rolling Defense drop to the floor, letting the wind blast through. His aura exploded and the image of a Pegasus immersed in fire emerged around him. "**PEGASUS!**" His orange cosmos flared up into a bonfire that then swirled up his arm to his fist. "**FLAME ATTACK!**"

"MAIA, WATCH OUT!" screamed Gorgon Pell.

Lance punched forward, matching Maia's attack, but a massive torrent of swirling flames was fire instead of an air blast. Basilisk and Minotaur watched in shock as the poison filled air currents were burned straight through by the fire attack and the two Specters were engulfed by a hurricane of flames that smashed them against the mountain side, immersing them in explosive cosmos and colliding them against volcanic boulder rubble that crashed down on top of them, screening the area with clouds of black dust and sand.

Both Saints watched as the flames burned and the rocks tumbled on top of the two Specters. Undoubtedly they would soon emerge. Powerful as the Flame attack was, it would not keep two strong Specters down like that. Lance fell to this hands, weakened by the poison, blood loss and the exhaustion brought by using his fire cosmos. Shinta, too, affected by Maia's attack, panted and struggled to stop seeing the world shaking.

"OPEN FIRE!"

Lance and Shinta screamed as they felt crossbow bolts piercing their bodies from behind. Shinta went down to the ground with a bolt in his side and Lance felt something sharp poking through his left arm. The Skeleton Soldiers and Gorgon moved in on the scene.

An armored gauntlet exploded on Lance's face. He fell screaming to the floor before Gorgon's hands grabbed him and dragged him through the sand.

The sound of rubble being moved around as Basilisk and Minotauros recovered was heard. The wounded Pegasus was dropped on the ground and felt someone snap the bolt impaling him before stepping on it, making him scream. A hand grabbed his hair and lifted his head. Lance looked up to the Basilisk Specter, eyes barely opened and blood running down his face.

"You...son of a...whore!" said the enraged Maia, between gritted teeth. His helmet had been knocked off, revealing his black hair, and his whole Surplice seemed smeared and scratched. "I'll make you PAY!"

A second uppercut forced his face upwards before a knee blow to the guts send it right back down, eyes widened in pain. The two other Specters grabbed his arms and lifted him as Lance endured blow after blow, valiantly taking all the damage without a fuss. A stronger, cosmos enveloped fist, however, forced him to gasp in pain when it collided with his chest, smashing his insides and robbing him of the last of his strength. Lance's body went limb in the two Specters arms, who gladly dropped him on the floor. A vicious, greaved, heavy foot, probably belonging to Guen then planted itself on his head, threatening to crush it if he tried anything.

"Strip him of his Cloth!" commanded Maia. "We'll take theirs, along with the Silver one and the three other Bronze ones we found, with us!"

Minotaurs put more pressure on Lance's head. "We'll make sure these two were worth the damn trouble!"

"What do we do about him?" asked Gorgon Pell.

"What the fuck do you think? KILL him!" shouted Maia. "I want his head on Pride Star's plate so he'll know what took so long!"

Pell nodded and knelt next to Lance, removing a small knife from within his cloth and imagining how he would use it to kill the Pegasus Saint.

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" someone yelled, forcefully, interrupting them.

The three specters looked at the source of the sound and saw Shinta, trembling as he stood up, gazing at the trio. His chains were hanging from his arms, lifeless, and his Cloth's chest plate had been removed by his own hand, now lying on the floor behind him, revealing his damaged green shirt and the wound from the bolt he snapped off. His eyes were narrowed and a pinkish aura was emanating from him, calmly flowing like controlled anger. Minotauros Guen's foot released Lance's head and returned to the ground, his attention now focused on the boy. Lance managed to raise his trembling head above the ground a little, staring at Shinta...

"Shinta..." he weakly cried out. "Run, you idiot...Get out of here! You...you're not even wearing your...cloth...!"

Shinta remained still, his aura suddenly growing larger. Guen and Pell were merely intrigued but Maia seemed genuinely surprised. The three specters and the Skeleton Soldiers walked towards Shinta and stopped only a few meters away, ready to jump on him at any moment. Shinta wasn't intimidated. In fact, his aura only grew larger, and small currents of wind seemed to be now emanating from it, harmlessly colliding with the three dark obstacles and the mass of foot men.

"What the hell?" wondered Pell. "Men, open fire!" The crossbowmen took aim and instantly unleashed their bolts after immersing them with cosmos. The reinforced arrows, however, bounced off harmlessly from Shinta's pink aura, almost as if pushed away. "What?! Reload!"

The men started preparing another round, but Maia swept his hand at them. "Stop wasting ammo! I want as little evidence of our presence here to destroy as possible!"

"I won't let you hurt him!" declared the Andromeda Saint, trembling "For my master Guardnia and for my friend Lance, I won't back down!"

The winds suddenly jumped in strength, though still nothing more than breezes to the specters. Lance opened his eyes as much as he still could, sensing the boy's true cosmos slowly, but surely, raising. Maia grunted, tired of these games.

"You fool!" said Pell "Do you actually think you can stop ALL three of us?Why don't you take your friend's advice and run?"

"No!" declared Shinta "First Ismara, then Arcadia and now Andromeda Island, my home! I won't let you hurt anyone any longer! I'll make sure of it!"

"That's it!" said Maia, fists trembling with anger. "I've had enough! Let's kill him once and for all and be done with this!" He charged cosmos into his fist. "At least we'll get the pleasure of killing the ones responsible for Kairos' death!"

The three specters flexed their legs, placing themselves into different fighting poses, all with deadly serious looks on their faces. They then let out a war cry and took a few steps forward, only for the breezes to suddenly transform into purple, cosmic streams and entangle them, paralyzing their limbs with their sheer force. The three specters all staggered, shocked to find that the winds were preventing them from moving. Lance was forced to cover his face with his arm as dust was kicked into it by the streams, his body also paralyzed.

_"____What's...what's this power?__" Pegasus_ thought, eyes blocked by the arm. He then widened them as much as possible, utterly shocked. "_Is that...his hidden power that he used in Arcadia? It's...enormous!"_

"Argh! I can't move!" said Pell, trying to walk forward and keep his fighting stance still.

"Wha...what's going on?" asked Minotaurus Guen, now scared.

"This...it can't be!" yelled Maia, incredulous, though still able to move only a little.

"We gave you a chance..." said Shinta, eyes narrowed "But you refused it! You harmed Lance, you harmed my Master...I simply can't let you get away with THIS!"

Maia then noticed, to his horror, that the bodies of the fallen Skeleton Soldiers were trembling, being dragged along the floor by the winds. Deducing what the boy was doing from his own experience with wind attacks, he narrowed his eyes and started walking as much as he still could towards Shinta, trying to stop him somehow.

"**BASILISK ANNIHILATION**-" yelled Maia, trying perform his technique, even if it meant using it a second time on a Saint, only for his feet to suddenly start rising into the air "What...What is THIS? NO! HAAAA!"

Shinta's aura exploded, releasing an enormous storm of purple winds as he waved his hand at the specters and cried out. "Burst out! **NEBULA STORM!**"

The three Specters screamed!

Even stronger winds emerged, now carrying small blasts of concentrated static electricity and cosmos, colliding with the three specters. The countless blasts hit them with tremendous speed, their surplices filling with cracks, purple streaks of light emerging from these, and the three Specters and Skeleton Soldiers were blown away into the air, yelling in despair and disappearing into the distance, tailed by numerous dark-armored bodies of their subordinates.

Lance then found himself struggling, grabbing on to the ground as hard as he could, a body and a bunch of rocks flying right past him and almost dragging him with it, but his legs were then lifted into the air by the winds and the weakness he was feeling finally got the best of him. Lance closed his eyes as he lost the grip he had on the ground.

"**NEBULA CHAIN**!" he heard someone yell.

He also heard something tearing through the currents and encircling his wrist, suddenly tightening around it and stopping his flight in mid-air. Lance opened his eyes and saw himself floating, strong airs battering on his chest, a sphere-pointed chain grabbing his right wrist, coming from Shinta. Lance couldn't believe it. The Andromeda Saint was still releasing waves of cosmos in the form of winds...and he was hanging in the air, completely helpless to fight them, tied to the surface by the chain,... like a kite.

He then felt the winds on his chest slowly weakening and his body slowly losing attitude. It came crashing down on the floor as delicately as Shinta could manage to control it and the Andromeda Saint, having rid the island of every enemy on it, rushed to his side, kneeling down next the floored Pegasus.

"LANCE!" he cried out, concerned and with hands grabbing him "Gosh, please be alright, Lance!"

Shinta turned Lance's body around and the Pegasus Saint grunted, eyes closed and teeth gritting, when his back hit the infertile soil. Shinta's smile slowly emerged when Lance opened his eyes, staring at Shinta, who quickly grabbed his head and pulled it to his chest. "You're OKAY!" he said, eyes closed with happiness, Lance grunting further as his head was hugged by Shinta "I'm so happy!"

A harsh hand suddenly shoved him away from Lance, obviously belonging to the Pegasus Saint, who then managed to, though with a lot of effort, raise his back from the floor and support himself on his elbows, coughing repeatedly. Blood was expelled from his mouth into the small, Pegasus Cloth plate right in front of his chest, tainting it's white with red.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" he said, as forceful as he could. He coughed repeatedly and felt like he was going to be sick. "...I think..."

Lance got up, helped by Shinta, and dusted his chest. He felt like crap, for more reasons than just the beating. "Are they all gone?"

Shinta's green eyes looked around. "Y-yeah, I think so?"

Red eyes looked at the distant see, picturing the Specter falling off to their deaths. He walked away from the boy, still trembling.

"Wait, Lance!" said Shinta. "Where are you going?"

"...We still have to find your master...Come on!"

"But..."

"What?"

"I..." Shinta hesitated "...Nothing..."

Lance grunted, spitting to the floor some blood in his mouth, and walked towards the big hut at the end of the clearing, hoping to find some clue inside to the whereabouts of Guardnia. Shinta suddenly felt himself concerned about the Pegasus Saint. He didn't really expect Lance to thank him for saving his life, but did he have to react so strangely?

Lance had been pushing him to release his true power in front of him ever since Arcadia and now that it finally happened., Lance would just not talk about it?

Shinta couldn't help but think that Lance was not taking any good conclusion about his true power. Sad, Shinta grabbed the Andromeda helmet and chest plate on the floor and rushed, trying to catch up with his Nissan.

{======================|0|======================}

**Later that night...**

{======================|0|======================}

Lance walked towards the edge of the cliff in which the Living Area sat upon, his breath visible in front of his mouth due to the extremely cold air that characterized the nights in Andromeda Island, hearing laughter and talking coming from behind.

The voices belonged to Andromeda Shinta and Cepheus Guardnia who, fortunately, was found safe. Having escaped to the desert in an attempt to trap the Specters in the swirling sandstorms and traps left behind by the civilization that once existed on the island, the Cepheus Silver Saint met the two exhausted Bronze Saints at the edge of it.

Though, safe, Guardnia was not exactly sound. He had several wounds and his Silver Cloth was heavily damaged by an attack from the Minotauros Specter. The three Saints, however, were able to get their hands on medical supplies and had treated themselves from the poison of the bolt wounds and the injuries from battle.

It seemed as if the students he was taking care of were away from the island, at the farm in Ethiopia that supplied it, so Guardnia was the only one at the island at the time of the attack. According to Guardnia, he was not even supposed to be at the island. He had only returned to it because he wished to leave a note for Shinta to head for the farm for the dinner he had been invited to, since he forgot to mention it in the letter.

"_The Specters probably chose the moment to attack the island because they thought it would be empty with the Cepheus Saint away. This means that they've been watching Guardnia's movements for some time. It may have failed miserably thanks to Shinta, but their attack was a lot more organized and planned out than Bennu Yakos'._" Lance deduced. "_What kind of fucked up luck do I have to stumble upon two Specter attacks in a row? __It's not even funny!_"

He placed his Cloth box on the floor and took out from within it a report note he was working on and started writing his conclusion. It seemed as if the Specters had been intent on stealing as many Cloths as they could, not to mention information on Saints connected to the island. "_Would they go after Shinta anyway later on if their attack had succeeded? What was their interest in this place's armors, anyway? Greed isn't enough to explain what happened here._" Lance tried to focus on his writing, but he couldn't get his thinking straight. He sighed in frustration and rubbed his eyes. "_What a bullshit day!... We ran into gold-ranked Specters, we almost got killed more than once and...W-what the fuck was that attack?_"

He grabbed his hurting chest and remembered how many times he came close to death. He almost got cut in half, shot to death, ripped apart by an axe, blown away to his death, poisoned to death and beaten to death. Until Guardnia got them antidotes, the poison from the bolts hurt like a bitch, too, and the bandages and band-aids he got covering his chest, checks, cuts, bruises and wounds. It had been easily one of the most disastrous days of his career, ranking beneath Arcadia and Death Queen Island.

The Pegasus Cloth, which was still recovering from its damage, turned its head to its owner in its box. "_You did your best, Lance._"

The Bronze Saint locked red eyes with red orbs. It had been a while since he's heard the horse's voice. Now that he thought of it, he hasn't really talked to it even after learning from Shinta it can speak.

"_...__Thanks__._" They both then went silent and Lance tried to finish his report. Guardnia decided to call off the dinner he planned for Shinta at the farm and instead spend the day bringing order to the island. He would soon call in Gold Ranks and Lance would like to leave that place long before he had to deal with people like Ionia, at least until he got a good rest back in Sanctuary Town.

Cepheus Guardnia approached the Bronze Saint. He had heard much of Pegasus Lance after his fight with Kastiel, and, at first, he was concerned about Shinta when Cynthia told him His Holiness had teamed the two together. Fortunately, Cynthia also made sure to tell him the situation was better than it sounded.

"Is something on your mind, Pegasus?" The teacher asked.

Lance turned to the famous Cepheus Saint. Guardnia was a tall, white man of neck-length blonde hair and a strong build wrapped in blue armor on top of a classic trainer shirt. Hardened blue eyes and a serene expression gave him a look of experience and insight and the arm he had to his chest and bandages denounced the many wounds he took while trying to lure the powerful Specter trio into traps. A pair of chains hanged from the gauntlets, one tipped by an eagle circle akin to Nike staff's and the other by a small spiked sphere that resembled a blue sun.

"I'm fine. I feel better already."

Guardnia watched the Pegasus Saint put away his report and getting up despite his wounds. "Are you sure? You were tense all day." Lance shrugged him off with a head shake and a groan. "...Shinta has headed for the port already. I already called for the higher ups and they should get here soon to investigate. Care to join on the way down?"

"Fine, whatever." Both Saints then picked up their things and started heading down the path towards the Northwest end of the island. The Living Area was situated on a cliff not very far from the west foot of the volcano. The walk to the shore should take a bit and Pegasus deduced that the Silver Saint wanted to talk all the way through.

As they entered the dirt path going down the cliff, Cepheus was the first to break the silence. "Saint Lance, I would like to thank you for helping save my life." Guardnia said "I haven't had a chance to do it yet, at least personally, and I could tell from the wounds you suffered in the battle that you deserve my most sincere thanks. Shinta spoke much of how you stood up to those Specters."

"...You don't have to thank me." said Lance, still not looking at the man, eyes fixed in the sea beyond the rough, black terrain. "The Sanctuary will be sure to give me some reward once I return. What do you want, Guardnia? Why did you tell Shinta in that letter you wanted to see me?"

"I wanted to meet his partner and see what kind of person he was, maybe talk with you a bit." The Cepheus Silver Saint explained. "...So, what do you think of my island?"

"I've seen worse."

Guardnia's expression grew somber. "So the story is true; you've been to Death Queen Island." The two of them stopped and the tension between them spiked all of a sudden. The narrowed look Lance then gave the Silver Saint had been given to him by many students who believed, and sometimes prided themselves, of having gone through their own piece of hell in their lives. "Cynthia told me much about you. She said you were a powerful Saint but an unrefined one. It's a shame Kastiel couldn't bother himself to invest his time with you in Olympus."

"Saint Kastiel got what was coming to him for it!" Lance them resumed march. Guardnia followed. "What the hell do you want from me, Guardnia? Can't we just walk in silence?!"

The increasing frustration in Lance's voice was apparent. As they headed down the path northwest, his blue eyes spotted the looming presence of the ruined Castle of Cepheus the test site of Shinta's fifth trial on the island, just off the dirt road. Cepheus chose his words carefully. "I apologize. I did not wish to insult you by mentioning him. I know matters like that don't easily heal and how much Saints care a great deal about honor. Four years trapped on a mountain you can't get down from with no cosmos or Master... I can't imagine what that's like."

Lance's head lowered, perhaps to hide his eyes from the Master. "Teaching in Sanctuary is a farce. The whole Master system is nothing but a cruel set up disguised as tradition. I would be better off without having met your Silver Saint friend."

Silence marked their walk for a bit. Guardnia, as a teacher of Sanctuary, should be offended by the teen's words, if he didn't know exactly what Lance was talking about. "Sanctuary isn't interested in creating citizens, but loyal soldiers. It has a long tradition, yes, but that's the way things go. Kastiel once believed there was little meaning in Sanctuary's strict laws and that you could take them with a grain of salt, but now he has just grown adapted to Sanctuary's ways. I'm not justifying Kastiel's attitude. I may not be a good teacher myself, but what he did to you was _disgusting_." he opinionated. "That being said, I can't help but think how Shinta would turn out without a Master on this island."

"I'm sure he would be fine..." Pegasus said. The bitterness in Lance's voice caught Guardnia attention. "His cosmos is ridiculous and he doesn't have to deal with people questioning the color of his eyes. He may have trained in a tougher place, but he had it a whole lot easier than I did!" Lance then confronted Guardnia. "You talk about how it's a shame Kastiel left me behind, but what would you have done if I trained here instead?!"

Cepheus took a bit to answer. He had dealt with many anger filled students. Lance's attitude was nothing new. "I would have patience and I would certainly not abandon you here, no matter how terrible a student you were." Guardnia then narrowed his sight. "Of course, if you did something evil, I would not hesitate to put you down either."

"Why would I do that?!" Lance shouted all of a sudden. "What is it with everyone in Sanctuary thinking I'm some sort of monster?!"

Guardnia opened his mouth to answer, but hesitated. Instead, he turned to Cepheus' castle. "Well, I like to believe people judge others based on actions, as well as Shinta and Saint Cynthia. However, if you want to know why people react the way they do around you, there's an old, but well known superstition that red eyes are a mark of evil."

Lance blinked. "What?! Are you for real? What kind of bullshit excuse is that?!"

Guardnia shrugged his shoulders. "Pegasus, we live in a society that deals with the supernatural. I'm sure you've notice already that your armor _speaks_ to you. Do you find it that strange that myths like these are born?"

"I..." Lance hesitated to answer. Outrage gave him words. "That doesn't matter! It doesn't change the fact that it's a ridiculous reason to hate someone. I didn't do anything wrong! But I guess Shinta doesn't have to deal with that bullshit either, does he?!"

"No, Saint Lance, he didn't, but he had to deal with people that were intolerant to his pacifism and his feminine looks." revealed the Master. "Despite the fact that Athena preaches peace, Shinta's attitude is abhorrent in Sanctuary, which is why I'm glad he has a strong, protective person like you partnered with him."

"He doesn't need my help!" Lance screamed. "I'm not sure if he told you about it, but he managed to defeated the entire Specter group by just unleashing his cosmos. In Arcadia, he pushed back an attack that would have me rolling over on the ground helplessly. He walks around like he's got no clue what to do about things but it turns out he's more powerful than you and me combined! Where the hell did that power, that _Nebula Storm_, come from?! THREE ELITE SPECTERS GONE! POOF!" Lance snapped his fingers to accentuate. "Just like that! And you're telling me he needs protection? Don't play dumb with me!"

Seeing Lance's pride come to the surface, Guardnia started seeing what was at the bottom of Lance's frustration. "I'm not playing dumb, he really needs someone to latch on to. Why do you think he refers to you almost like he would a brother?"

"That is a load of-"

Guardnia pointed his finger at the castle just off their path. "Let me tell you a story about him. It's about when I first discovered he had that immense cosmos. The ruins you see over there are the old Castle of the king of this island. I'm not going to specify the details, but let's just say that, for his penultimate test, Shinta was supposed to enter it with another person and only one would come out."

Lance's red eyes turned to the large rock ruins. It was a huge, square building of ruined battlements and corner towers. A cavern like opening was detectable on the front wall, but its innards were shrouded in shadow. "Yeah, so what?"

Cepheus' expression grew somber. "This was the test I dreaded the most for him. I knew Shinta was incapable of killing for cruelty, but he also did not have a choice. If the two of them didn't find a solution, they would perish by sunrise. He spent all night trying to find a third option." he explained. "All the other students I ever managed to trained to this point resorted to violence and ultimately failed. Shinta's pacifism barred him from doing such a thing. The other person kept trying to kill him, but Shinta refused to harm him. In the end, Shinta was forced to reveal his cosmos, using it to paralyze that person before something terrible happened."

The Pegasus Saint took a bit to speak, trying to figure out where Guardnia was going with all of this. "What happened?"

"Well," Guardnia resumed, "In the end, he found a loophole, but it didn't change the fact that Shinta refused to use that massive cosmos, even when his life was clearly at stake. He only used it because a person he cared much about was trying to force him into making a terrible option, whom he loved too much to take it. Saint Lance, I don't know why Shinta is so powerful, but the fact of the matter is, he can't control that power. The time he took to decide he should use that attack just to paralyze is opponent is proof that he's afraid of what his own strength can do."

Lance stayed silent for a bit, at loss for words. "He... could kill anyone he wanted. He could kill _me_ so easily..."

"Is that what you are worried about, Lance?" he asked "That he's going to kill you? Or that he's stronger than you?"

"...He constantly hides behind me, asking me to help him...to protect him...And he is ___this_strong...He played me like a fool..."

Cepheus Guardnia let Lance make his own conclusions. Part of teaching was knowing how to make others realize their own mistakes. As far as Guardnia knew, that was the best way to make others want to improve of their own accord. When he felt like Lance's anger was subsiding, he took a chance and patted the boy's shoulder.

Lance trembled with the contact, almost shoving the hand away. The Pegasus Bronze Saint was obviously not familiar with the concept of a friendly male adult figure. Every grown man who he met so far has treated him like shit.

"The truth is that Shinta has no fault of being who he is. He's gentle and does not like to hurt and he's certainly no more at fault for having a power he doesn't control than you are for not saving more people in Arcadia, for why Kastiel abandoned you or for what happened in Death Queen Island that you couldn't stop." reasoned Cepheus. "Besides, do you really think that he would spend the day telling me just how much you have helped him, how many times you saved him, how much you taught him and how much he cares about you...how many times you've been like a brother to him if he didn't need and deeply respected you?"

"...No." Pegasus looked away. "No, I don't think so..."

Sensing Lance was coming to a positive realization, Guardnia smiled and decided to change subject. "Let me ask you something, is he still holding on to that praying necklace?" Lance nodded as an answer. Guardnia chuckled. "I don't know about you, but I don't think I have anything to fear from someone who literally wishes the best for everyone he cares about everyday of his life."

Guardnia's chuckle made Lance feel ridiculous on the inside. Though still shocked for having witnessed the boy unleash such a tremendous power, Pegasus started wondering why he began suspecting the innocent, naive kid of some sort of foul play. He looked at his own hands. "I should have done more today. I wouldn't be in the state I am if I was stronger."

"There was very little you could do. Two of the three Specter were wearing Celestial Star Surplices, marking them as Gold Ranks. You're lucky you had Shinta by your side to use Nebula Storm."

Lance started thinking events over. Now that he realized it, it made little sense for Shinta to have used Nebula Storm in Arcadia. Lance himself was almost blown away by the attack and the fires in that village were already spreading fast enough. He seemed to be having a tough time containing just the power used against Yakos' Corona Blast and the attack against Maia's team took a bit to charge, too. If Shinta really couldn't control that power, he could have caused more damage with a reckless Nebula Storm that Bennu and Shaman put together.

The same circumstances applied in most of their other missions together, which required delicate operations rather than open combat. Maybe Shinta really wasn't on top of the situation as much as Nebula Storm made it seem. Lance tightened his fists. "_I don't want to be pushed around like I was today. There's got to be a way I can reach Gold Rank!_"

Cepheus noticed they were reaching the dock. Shinta was already preparing the boat and Saint Cynthia seemed to have arrived together with a second person. "Anything you want to ask me before you leave?"

"Actually, yes. Tell me something, how the hell does Shinta do that weird soccer trick of his?" Lance's red eyes squinted at the green-haired boy talking to Cynthia and the other man. "Damn it, I'm a good goal keeper but he keeps trashing my defense around!"

"Oh, that!" Guardnia chuckled. "It's a 'chanfle' trick to execute banana shots. Believe or not, Shinta is better at it than I am. And they say Asians can't play soccer! Seriously, some people..."

Cynthia and Shinta noticed the two of them approaching. The Cassiopeia Silver Saint rushed to their side. "Oh my gosh, Guardnia, are you okay?" Cepheus nodded at her. "I came here as soon as I could. Captain Kirin of the Papal Guard is also here with me."

The Pegasus and Cepheus Saints turned to the captain. He was a tall man of sharp, falcon-like eyes, of long, back length tied hair and wearing a heavy set of foot soldier armor. The slightly tanned tone of his white skin denounced Iberian features. Guardnia recognized him as the disguised Gold Saint of Capricorn. "_Lord Kirin, you've responded to the SOS._" the Cepheus Saint confided in mental message.

The Catalan warrior gazed at the island, trying to imagine the battle that occurred there. "I am here representing the Pope's military authority. A squad of Silver Saints will be here shortly to sweep the island for surviving enemies and clues. I apologize for not having been able to help."

"Where have you people been?!" shouted Lance. "Where are the fucking Gold Saints? We almost died here!"

Shinta held him back. "Wait, Lance, I'm sure they have an explanation. We couldn't detect the Specter's presence either until we found that dead Skeleton Soldier, right?"

Kirin eyed Pegasus intensely. He found it a very strange coincidence that Lance's team would be at the site of both Specter attacks. If the emergency call was true and they faced three Specters, it meant that the menace of the rogue warriors of Hades, as far as Pandora's envoys spoke the truth, was dealt with for good, but his refined warrior 6th sense tingled. Something wasn't right about this attack in how stealthy it was.

"Gold Saint operations are secret. Their resources and responsibilities are not to be divulged to or, for that matter, questioned by a Bronze Saint." He turned from the outraged Pegasus to the Cepheus and Cassiopeia Saints. "_Saint Cynthia, I trust you with heading the investigative procedures. Saint Sagitta of Nam should reroute comrades to this location soon. Saint Cepheus, please head for the Golden Zodiac as soon as you're done recovering for report issues._" Both Silver Saints nodded. Cynthia in particular, was relieved that help would come soon. Kirin was just as bit as strict and honorable as Ionia, but the Capricorn Gold Saint was far more reasonable and kinder than the authoritative Fort Commander of Peloponesia. "_I apologize for not having been able to interfere in the attack. I will stake my honor in making sure that every last remnant of threats are dealt with._"

Lance tried to get the man's attention. "Hey, are you listening? I need to know why my partner and I were almost killed while you guys were nowhere in sight!"

Kirin sighed and finally addressed him. "Saint Lance, if you are so outraged, you will be happy to express it at the MMC, where you've been ordered to go back to to report what happened here and receive a proper reward." This seemed to calm down the rebellious teen. "I will be looking over the battle scene. Athena be with you all."

The two Bronze Saints watched as the 'Papal Guard captain' headed inside the island to begin assessing the situation. "Are you feeling better, Lance?" Shinta asked, worried about his wounds. Lance nodded and Shinta sighed in relief. "That's good. I was really worried about you... Lance, you're not angry with me, are you?"

Lance got on the boat. "Yeah, but I'll change that soccer score in a second. 15-10... pfft! Your Cloth won't have enough rocks in all of Sanctuary to mark all the goals I'll soccer against you once we get back!"

Shinta's smile beamed up, relieved that Lance was not infuriated with Nebula Storm. He turned to the two Silver Saints. "Master, will you be alright? I'm sorry we won't get to have that dinner."

"Shinta, it's fine. I'm satisfied with just seeing you again." He patted the Andromeda Saint's back. "You did great, today. You should be proud of yourself, Shinta, you saved my life. I can also tell you've grown a lot. Being outside this cursed island has done wonders to you."

Shinta nodded, moved. "T-Thank you, Master. I'm just so glad you're alive. I don't know what I would do, if-"

"Don't think like that, Shinta, the important is that you saved Guardnia." said Cynthia. "I have to admit that the wimpy boy I knew is accomplishing all sorts of things nowadays. You'll surely get that Silver Rank you need in no time."

"Shinta, come on!" shouted Lance from the jet boat. "I'll fucking leave you here if you don't hurry up."

"Oh, I got to go. I promise I'll visit you soon, Master." Shinta then joined Lance and helped him start the engine. He waved back at the two Silver Saints as he sped off the island.

Guardnia and Cynthia waved back at him. When the Bronze Saints were off sight, the Amazon turned to Guardnia. "We need to talk, you know?" she asked very sweetly. The Master sighed, already feeling the familiar gaze of her expressionless mask somehow transmit her anger. "You see, I had a conversation with Saint Nam back at the MMC shortly after Arcadia..."

"Yes?"

"He told me that Shinta, after getting his Cloth, showed up at his office with a recommendation letter from you, which is very kind of your Majesty and all, but... I don't know! Your wisdom must really elude me, because I guess I can't figure out why you wrote in that letter to Nam not let Shinta go to Japan unless he got the Silver Rank!"

Guardnia folded his arms "That-"

"I thought you wanted the boy to finally go after his mother, but guess I'm just clueless like that! Why would you trick him like this? Is this because of the Cepheus Cloth? Is it putting you up to this?" Guardnia gave her a guilty look and headed to the island's innards to join Gold Saint Kirin without a word. Cynthia stared at the Silver Saint, wondering what on Athena's earth was going on in his head. "So you're just not going to tell me what's going on?" she asked. Guardnia didn't answer and moved on. "_Shinta better not end up hurt over what you're doing, Guardnia._"

The Amazon Silver Saint then rushed after her old partner, intent on joining Kirin in assessing the island's situation.

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**Present Time**

**Golden Zodiac, Pope's Chambers**

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Pope Shion presented in his hand a copy of the files on the Andromeda Island incident to the Gold Saints, which contained information on the several reports made on the area and by the involved Saints along with other documents, such as the letter Guardnia sent Shinta and the note Cepheus intended to leave on the island for Shinta to head for Ethiopia instead. "In total, it is estimated, via calculations made by Cepheus Guardnia and Pegasus Lance's team that two Celestial Stars, one Terrestrial Star and twenty-five Skeleton Soldiers were involved in the attack. Approximately ten soldiers fell by Guardnia's chains while the rest were wiped out by Andromeda Shinta."

Aquarius Malta, though normally unaffected, expressed surprise at these numbers. "Two Celestial Stars defeated by a Bronze Saint in a single, widespread attack? I find that very strange." he commented. "Are you sure, your Holiness, that it is Lance who must be discussed here as a potential Gold Saint?"

Taurus Daniel was also interested. "I agree. I have met the boy at Pegasus' fight with Heracles Aguilon, but I did not imagine he had that kind of power!" Daniel rubbed his chin. "What a shame that he's a Virgo..."

Shion chuckled. "The subject of the Andromeda Saint's capacity for destruction is not relevant at hand, though we will address it later on. Moreover, it is a brutish power that, though it demonstrates a tremendous level, lacks the refinement and properties of an unlocked 7th Sense. Andromeda Shinta, after all, can't move at the speed of light. Our next subject, however, deals with that precise matter though in regards to Lance. As you know-"

"Pope Arles, your Holiness" interrupted Capricorn Kirin, drawing the attention of the room to himself. "I apologize for this, but I must cut you short. The matter of the Andromeda Island attack is not settled."

"Kirin, is something wrong?" asked Shion. It was rare for one of the Gold Saints to refer to him by his Pope name when in such closed quarters.

Kirin nodded respectfully. "Yes, your Holiness. I'd like to express my suspicions on the matter. I find it extremely strange that a team of two Bronze Saints would be involved in both attacks of the rogue group of Specters." he claimed. The surprised whispers of his comrades filled the room. Kirin narrowed his tempered eyes. "In both occasions, Sanctuary was victim of daring raids by a small group of dangerous Specters and in both occasions, Pegasus lance and Andromeda Shinta '_happened' to stumble upon them_ and stop them."

The other Gold Saints glanced at each other, wondering what their comrade was doing. Saga in particular tried to decipher Kirin's thoughts. Capricorn Kirin was a member of what was nowadays called the 'Civil War Generation', one that was characterized by their temperate, loyal nature and suspicious outlooks of someone who had suffered a terrible betrayal. It was no wonder a member of it would find the case strange.

It took a particularly strict mindset like Kirin, who was raised in the dictum of the House of Capricorn, to point this out, though. Gemini Saga was he first to address him. "It's indeed a strange coincidence, Saint Kirin, but in both cases there are documents that prove that Saint Lance did just happen to stumble upon them. In Arcadia, he had been sent together with Shinta to Ismara because the fort had requested additional personnel, correct? In the case of Andromeda Island, there is the copy of the letter Guardnia sent Andromeda Shinta, in which he asks him to bring Saint Lance to the Island, a copy which the Pope has just shown us."

"While the letter and the note tell us why Saint Lance went to Andromeda Island," acknowledged Kirin "it's timing with the attack is too perfect. Now consider this, comrades, it has been concluded that the Specters were trying to steal the Cloths of the island. For what purpose, it's unknown, but what was the one Andromeda Island Cloth that was missing from its home turf? It was the Cloth of Andromeda itself, worn by Pegasus Lance's partner."

The expression on the adult Gold Saints darkened, but Mu protested. Wait, that does not prove anything! Isn't the fact that Shinta is a student if Guardnia, this holder of an Andromeda island armor, the reason for the invitation in the first place?"

"Well,..." Aiolos reluctantly admitted. "That does only prove that Guardnia is not at foul, Mu...It doesn't prove Lance's innocence."

"Correct!" enforced Kirin. "Now here's another possibility. While Ismara has requested the MMC for personal, it did not make a specific request for Bronze Saints, much less Pegasus' team. Pegasus Lance knew the fort would be vulnerable and that if he signed himself up, the MMC would not route forces for Ismara. While I said before that I headed the investigation of the Ismara incident and that I concluded that Lance's tracking of the Specters was genuine, it does not refute this suspicion."

"So you're saying Lance is a spy?" queried Saga.

"On both occasions, Saint Pegasus was in a perfect position to both denounce an opportunity to strike the Ismara region and Andromeda Island _and_ take part on the attack while knowing or ensuring no interference from the MMC would be made. In both occasions, contact with Sanctuary was impossible due to extraordinary factors conjured by the Specters, making these two scenarios perfect for an inside operation to occur."

Aiolos tried to interfere. "But, Saint Kirin-"

"I'm not done. I would also like to bring to the table history and statistics. As you all know incidents of this gravity with Specters outside the periods of Holy War are extremely rare, if not non-existent, mostly due to the intervals of peace created by Hades' reincarnation cycles. Specter sightings alone are considered very uncommon and cause for investigation in said periods. Yet, since Saint Lance has joined the ranks, we've had two Specter attacks, one of critical atrocity and another involving Celestial Stars, within _three_ _months_."

The Catalan warrior then turned to the Pope. "Your Holiness, I refuse to cast a vote of trust in someone of such questionable loyalty. Saint Lance had already expressed public several times desires to leave Sanctuary or oppose its authority. He has every reason to hate Sanctuary; a Master who abandoned him, a population who is aggressive to him, a Goddess he does not believe in and more. I will not support his promotion and I call out for my comrades to follow my example."

The room fell into tense silence. Gold Saint glances were exchanged back and forth. Malta remained calm while Daniel scratched the hair under his helmet. Mu quivered, feeling like the seriousness of the discussion just took a spike all of a sudden.

Aiolos turned to Saga. "_What do you think of this? You've seen Lance with your own eyes at Arcadia, right?_"

The blue-haired teen did not meet his eyes, trying to look unaffected. Eventually he spoke out his opinion. "I think Kirin has a point, but no proof." He felt Kirin's stare fall down on him. He couldn't tell if it was an offended or a surprised one. "The wounds I saw on Pegasus during the aftermath of Arcadia were no result of theater between a spy and his employees. Moreover, even considering Andromeda's naiveté, there are witnesses, such as Saint Cynthia, who saw him fighting the Specters, protect his comrades and saving people in both scenarios. Do I discount the strangeness of the coincidence? No. However, I believe there is much more to the matter than just the possible involvement of Saint Lance."

Shion joined hands behind his back after putting down the documents. "I do not ask any of you to make a decision right now. I say it again, there is a reason why I wanted your opinion; it is entirely within my power to promote Lance without any of your approval, but now I know you all see why I could not make the decision lightheartedly, specially when it involves your order, the most important one in Sanctuary, that of the Gold Saints of Athena. Hopefully, as we move on to the next subject at hand, we'll come to a righteous conclusion." Shion's hand waved at Taurus Daniel. "Daniel, if you please?"

The huge, blonde man stepped forward. "We have spoke of education, morals, comradeship and feats, comrades, but now we will speak of something more raw and just as fundamental to our order. We will speak of power!"

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**Chapter End**

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**Next Chapter**: Upgrade to Silver

**Release Date**: 12th October

**Description**: Near the end of the two years prior to the Gold Saint discussion, Lance is officially admitted as a Silver Saint candidate but must face a special foe to determine just how strong he is.


	11. 1A: Upgrade to Silver

**N****otable OCs up until**** now that I own:** Pegasus Lance; Andromeda Shinta; Heracles Aguilon's Silver Saint Generation; Taurus Daniel's Gold Saint Generation

**Notable Original concept (until now)**: Pegasus Temple; Sanctuary Town; MMC; Sanctuary Forts and Outposts

**Recurrent/Cameo OCs belonging to Jenny DeVic:** Cassiopeia Cassandra; Behemoth Torak (Toruk); Mrs. Schafurwatt

**Recurrent/Cameo concepts belonging to Jenny DeVic:** 88 Knights Festival; Golden Line Heritage; The Great Bodyguard legend; The Sanctuary-sponsored orphanages; Andromeda Island's geography and tests

Author Notes:

_Please enjoy and review._

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_"____The desire for Silver Sainthood among Bronze Ranks has always been____ c____onstant. It is a far more realistic goal than Gold Sainthood and carried many rewards and freedoms, including the prestige of acting as officers to the Bronze Saints and Masters to many renowned Training Grounds. _

___Never was the role of this order as important as during the Civil Wars and the post-Abaddon period, times where the Gold Saints acted most efficiently as deterrents or match ups for attacking enemy Gold Ranks. The void created by their absence from their usual matters in such times was often filled by the Silver Saints, who took the role of leaders of the army, bringing order to the chaos of the battles._

___Thus, it comes with no surprise that Pegasus Lance, known in his early periods to be rebellious to Sanctuary, would covet this position should the opportunity arise in times of peace, such as the one he lived in, where the responsibilities of the Silver Saints would be decreased in inverse proportion to their freedom of movement."_

-_extract from "The False Peace", by Aquarius Camus_

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Taurus Daniel took a moment to prepare his words and review the mood amongst his comrades. He could not really say that Kirin's protest came unexpected. The experienced Taurus knew Kirin before the Civil War and the falcon-eyed warrior had always been suspicious of others. Pegasus' story wasn't clean, either. "In order to be accepted as a candidate for a Cloth of Gold, a number of things is required. First, you must have an unlocked 7th Sense. Second, you must be within the five strongest candidates born under the constellation of the Gold Cloth in question. Third, you must be an accepted member of Sanctuary's society. The position of Cancer Gold Cloth has been unoccupied since 1963, so there is little if any competition for it."

All Gold Saints nodded in accord. "In order to be actually chosen for it, you must obtain the blessing of the Pope or, preferably, Athena among those five candidates, right?"

"Yes. Silver Cloths, however, share the same circumstances as Bronze ones when it comes to be born under their protection. In order to obtain that protection, two to three years of preparation are usually required. As a result, the age range of Bronze Saints that underwent normal training programs is usually between twelve to fourteen years old while the youngest Silver Saints typically are between sixteen and eighteen." Taurus continued. "Two weeks ago, Pegasus Lance signed himself up as a candidate for the Silver Saint order."

"Let me guess; there was a backlash?" asked Saga.

Daniel scoffed. "Of course, but the Silver Saint order has not the authority to deny this. Pegasus was running for the Silver Cloth whether the other Saints liked it or not."

"Why would he do that?" asked Mu. "I thought he didn't like Sanctuary. Why would he want to climb the ladder?"

"Most likely to gain more power and freedom." answered Aquarius Malta. The red-haired Gold Saint waved his hand at his own armor. "The Silver and Gold Saint orders enjoy particular luxuries in times of peace. As a Silver Saint, Pegasus would also be in a better position to one day be able to ask Sanctuary to put him on reserve or let him go altogether. Military protectionism is tighter among the lower ranks. You'd be surprised at how young some Gold Saints have turned over their Cloths for the next generation to enjoy."

Daniel took note of Malta's last words and contained a chuckle. "Is he saying that because of Camus, Shura and Aldebaran? That is so bitter of you, Malta."

"Or maybe he was just trying to position himself better in Sanctuary." commented Kirin.

"Silver Cloths are more likely to abandon you if you try something fishy against Sanctuary, don't they, Kirin? They also keep pickier eyes on their owners." Malta reminded him. "Plausible as it may be that Lance has an agenda against Sanctuary, living with a Silver Cloth not nearly as submissive as the Pegasus Bronze Armor would only be a hindrance to him if he were to ever try anything treacherous." Malta saw Kirin fold his arms, unconvinced. "I don't like Pegasus Lance anymore than you do, but I'd say if he successfully obtaining the trust of a Silver Cloth then that would actually reduce the chances of him being a traitor."

"Let's not dwell on that right now, okay?" asked Taurus, not wanting to go back to he previous subject. "Since the Silver Saint order did not grant Pegasus Lance an immediate pass, a competition was arranged between several candidates, the objective being a Battle Royale to determine who had the right to a chance to obtain the Kentaurus Silver Cloth." The Gold Saint explained. "The winner then would be subject to a battle test administered by a high-ranking member of the army. His Holiness, the Pope, was present and so was I."

"Daniel and I will now speak to you of that test and what we observed." explained Shion to his Saints. "This is the episode of Lance's career that gave birth to the possibility of him becoming a Gold Saint, namely the battle between him and the Silver Saint Heracles Aguilon."

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**Chapter 11**

**First Arc**

**Episode 7**

**Upgrade to Silver**

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**The day before...**

**Early January, 1976**

**Sanctuary Town Coliseum**

**One year and two months after the Andromeda Island Incident**

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The Coliseum was packed that day with civilians, soldiers and Saints, all to watch the massive match between the dozens of candidates struggling for the Kentaurus Silver Cloth. His Holiness, the Pope, watched the whole thing from his private stand, accompanied by an escort of his elite, halberd wielding Papal Guards, young Mu who contently distracted himself on a seat by the Pope's feet with a mechanical gadget he was working on and Daniel who, under the guise of a Golden Zodiac gardener, sat far off from the Pope among the people.

The battle was characterized by the loud shouts of protest and disgust coming from the stands, however, as the people saw the many warriors fall one by one until after a while only a small group that included Pegasus Lance still fought at the ring.

"This is BULLSHIT!" one screamed.

"Why can't anyone just get that guy?!" another one shouted

"Beat him! One of you just grab him and beat the fuck out of him!"

"God damn it! I can't believe that guy is going to get a Silver Cloth."

"...making me lose a ton of money!"

"...can't believe this crap!"

"This is so lame..."

"If it were me, this would be done by now!"

The Pope shook his head as he continued to watch the spectacle of outrage. While the fight had been prolonged by the large number of candidates and high level of skill of some of them, there was clearly a small group of men who had the advantage, namely the Bronze Saints. Though out of their armors, they were making short work of the foot soldier candidates who, though of comparable speed levels, just couldn't keep up with the hardened youth who had gained the favor of a Bronze Cloth.

But what was causing the most outrage was the fact that none other than Pegasus Lance was among those Bronze Saints and he was maintaining an advantage by means of using his main technique, the Charge Fist, to hit and run amongst his toughest foes. Several fallen bodies already littered the arena and it didn't seem like the fight was going to last much longer.

Down at the arena everyone had their eyes on, Lance, absent of Cloth, did his best to dodge around the onslaught of blows a Bronze Saint had turned against him. He blocked a clumsier attack with his arm before delivering a devastating kick that shot the foe out of the arena. He sped out of there before two attacks from behind struck the ground he stood on.

His feet dragged on the ground as he tried to land from his sudden dash. He saw the weaker foes dropping like flies until only about three Bronze Saints were left, who wasted no time in turning their attention to him. Lance didn't recognize any of them, mostly because he took all his missions for Sanctuary by himself or with Shinta and his time in Sanctuary was otherwise spent away from the other members of the army.

A sudden supersonic blitz allowed them to surround the unarmored Pegasus. They all figured Lance was the biggest threat and could deal with each other later. One jumped in the air, another dashed at him and the last one seemed to be preparing a long range attack by charging cosmos into his hands.

Lance blocked the dasher's attack easily and countered with a strike to the leg that tripped the opponent. The jumper descended on him with a kick that Lance caught with both hands and, when the sonic boom of a large cosmos blast being shot was heard, a sudden twist of wrist and footing shift allowed Lance to spin the caught foe straight at the blast, taking him out.

The shot Bronze Saint screamed and crashed on the ground. Before the other two could recover, Lance made his move. His arms crossed tightly before his chest and the surface of his skin lit up with stored cosmos he had prepared prior to the fight. He then spread them to the sides. "**Pegasus BURST**!"

There was a flash of light followed by a powerful sudden explosion of cosmos that struck all three Bronze Saints, sending them flying through the air and crashing straight on the ground. Dust and pebbles blasted from the arena's floor by the attack screened the area for a bit, but it didn't take long to clear to reveal a prevailing, panting Lance standing amidst the defeated Bronze Saints and foot soldiers.

Burst was a technique he had developed to serve as an emergency move or as a finisher. It required him to store cosmos into a thin external layer that, rather than act as a barrier or empowerment, would be inert and static until the right moment. He would then make it explode, causing a sudden burst of power that struck everything within a certain range instantly. What it lacked in brute destructive power, it compensated versatility. Unlike with his other techniques, especially the Charge Fist, Burst required no freedom of movement, even relishing in situations where it is constrained.

A moment of tense silence followed shortly before being broken by an outraged uproar from the crowd.

"What?!"

"Fuck this! This is bullshit!"

"He cheated!"

"NO! We can't give the Silver Cloth to _that_ guy!"

"What did you do to my friends?!"

Lance's red eyes narrowed in irritation. He tried to ignore the revolting stands, who had expected someone else less hated to have become the winner. He tried to focus instead on the Pope, who descended from the stands along with his escorts and the Silver Cloth of Kentaurus that had been resting by the old man's feet.

Lance exited the field and stood before the holy man. Even after two years, he couldn't help but feel anger at the sight of his black, expressionless mask that had done nothing but condemn him since he returned from Mount Olympus, but this time it was different. This time Lance would get to see the bitterness in Arles' voice as he was force the finally reward Pegasus in front of everyone, not to mention with a promotion.

The several members of the crowd started leaving. Shinta, who had been watching from the stands, kept his distance from the encounter between Lance and the Pope but also couldn't wait to go down there and congratulate his friend. "_You did it, Lance!_"

Shinta was not entirely surprise. Truth be told, Lance had no real foe among the many contestants to the prize, as he was the most experienced on the field. Andromeda Shinta also noticed that the Burst technique seemed to have changed Lance's attitude a little bit, as Pegasus seemed less hesitant to make risks knowing that he had a way out of a tight situation through his new move.

"Man," complained a foot soldier to a citizen friend as the passed by Shinta. "Can't believe Pegasus is getting a Silver Cloth. I don't care how strong he is; that guy is rotten!"

"I know... but did you hear that story about how his team pulverized three Specters they encountered in Andromeda Island?" asked said friend "I've heard they were Celestial Stars, too. You're in the army; how strong are Celestial Stars anyway?"

"Strong enough for me to know that story is BS! Celestial Stars are pretty much Hades' equivalence to Gold Saints. Besides, we're not even at war. How could Specters be attacking us if Holy War isn't expected until twenty years from now?"

Shinta saw the citizen unconvinced by the soldier's words before the two of them trailed off. He tried to focus on the Pope's declaration of Lance's victory.

Meanwhile, the disguised Gold Saint of Taurus took notice of the green haired boy, who was the only one asides from him who wasn't leaving the Coliseum in disgust. "_So that is the Andromeda Saint, Guardnia's sole surviving successful student?_" he wondered, having taught Guardnia to be a Silver Saint himself. "In a small way, I suppose I could call him my grand-student."

Down at the fighting floor, Lance waited patiently for the Pope to hand him over the Cloth Box and announce him as the Silver Saint, but Arles seemed to be taking his sweet time, as if he really didn't like what he was being forced to do right now. "_Though I can't really tell thanks to that mask of his._" he admitted. The object was so concealing that, for all he knew, the Pope could have fallen asleep during the contest without anyone noticing. "_But he has to give it to me! The contest' rules say it so._"

The Silver Cloth Box suddenly raised itself from the ground, lifted by Shion's telekinesis. "Pegasus Lance,… two years ago we met each other for the first time right in this arena. It's a shame it was under such, well, _shameful_ circumstances." Shion could then very easily detect a concealed grunt of frustration from Pegasus. The Pope saw the many foes littering the field. "Truth be told, the mere fact that you beat a Silver Saint back then made you a possible candidate to Kastiel's order, though I suppose something like this was necessary to really cement that reality."

Lance felt like saying something, just to give the Pope an answer. He could sense the old man was building up to something and that Pegasus was not going to like it. It took a bit to get it out of his throat. "...Thank you...your Holiness." he said, though he really wish he could afford to call the man something else. "_He'd just paralyze me and send me to jail if I did it, though._"

"Deserving as you are of the Silver Cloth," said the Pope as he made it land at Lance's feet. "I'm afraid I cannot offer you the title of Silver Saint..."

"WHAT?!" Lance exploded. His fists tightened "What are you saying?! I won! I got the Silver Cloth so what the hell is the problem?!"

Shion watched the red eyed boy give voice to his frustration but he couldn't blame him. Pegasus Lance was more than deserving of his shot at becoming a Silver Saint, though the choice itself surprised Shion because he always figured Lance would try to leave Sanctuary as soon as possible, not rise in its ranks. "_Perhaps he's merely looking for freedom in the power that the upper orders give. I cannot say I complain about that; if Lance's red eyes are the sign he's the boy Hecate spoke of, then I need him close by and as tied to Sanctuary as possible. Though he's a Pegasus, the flames of the Phoenix Hecate mentioned may be merely a symbol of whatever happened to Lance during that mission of his to Death Queen Island. Regardless of the truth, I need to see more; I need to push this boy to his limit._" Shion then offered an explanation. "You imply injustice too soon, Bronze Saint. Do you see me as that cruel of a creature?"

"_You really don't want me answering that, not after the shit your negligence has put me through!_" Lance thought.

The Lemurian continued. "I merely meant to say that your trials are not yet over. I want you face one final test before joining the Silver Saints, one that you can wear the Kentaurus Silver Cloth to. It's nothing elaborate. In fact, it is right up your alley for it involves fighting a superior Silver Saint in front of everyone." The rage in the teen's face switched to puzzlement. "Return here by the end of the day. Heracles Aguilon will be here to face you in combat." The Pope and his Papal Guards then departed. "Oh, and... congratulations over obtaining the Silver Cloth. Whether you'll be using it in the future will be up to your next battle, though."

The Pegasus Saint watched in puzzlement as the Pope and his escorts left the Coliseum. Not even the sudden arrival of a congratulating Shinta took his mind off the Pope's twist. "Lance, you've done it! You got the Silver Cloth! That is so amazing."

"_Yeah_...right!"

Shinta blinked. "What's wrong?"

Lance recalled everything he had heard over time about the Heracles Silver Saint. "I think the Pope just screwed me over again..."

{======================|0|======================}

**Several hours later...**

{======================|0|======================}

The sun descended, painting the cloudy sky red and shadowing the Coliseum with the rocky peaks of the mountains surrounding Sanctuary. The Coliseum's floor had long been cleared of unconscious bodies and the crowds seats were almost entirely clear save for a certain unit of foot soldiers who served under Heracles Aguilon. Pegasus Lance or, better yet, Kentaurus Lance entered the arena along with Andromeda Shinta, carrying his new Silver Cloth on his back.

Lance put the Kentaurus Silver Cloth on the ground. It was much like the Pegasus Cloth Box, though the metal it was made of had a color more akin to bright silver and the engraving of the winged horse biting on the handle was replaced by that of a prancing centaur holding the Box's handle with one hand and a bow on the other. Lance grabbed and pulled said handle, triggering the usual mechanism that made the box open up, dropping all its sides to the ground and revealing Lance's new Cloth.

Shinta still couldn't help but widen his eyes at the beautiful armor. It consisted of a metal, quadrupedal figure composed by a folded body armor, with the front and back halves of the leg protections serving as the legs. The waist protection was placed at the neck of the body armor to serve as a connecting point to the humanoid half of the creature, with one of its plates lifted up to shape a torso from which the arm protections formed arms and the folded, open face mask formed a sort of head.

The untainted, shiny surface of the protection matched the beauty of Silver Cloths Shinta had seen in the past, such as that of his Master and Saint Cynthia. He watched as Lance took the pieces one by one and put them on. "Do you need help?"

"I'm fine, thanks. It's not exactly a full body plate armor." Lance took his time checking out each plate, nook and decoration before wearing it. Once he was finished putting each piece on and adjusting the headpiece, he closed his fingers repeatedly and moved around his arms. "It's so much lighter than Pegasus, it's surreal." He then noticed the spikes on his shoulder guards and the headpiece protrusions. "I just wish I didn't look like a hedgehog."

"I think you look awesome!" Shinta encouraged. It didn't seem to change Lance's mind. "Is something wrong, Lance? I thought... you'd be happier with getting the Silver Cloth."

"I thought so, too. I guess I'm just worried. What is the point of this fight?" Lance inquired. He saw the Pope entering the Coliseum once more and take a seat in the same spot as during the contest. "I've proven that I'm strong. Why is he making me go through this, too?"

Shinta, too, couldn't figure out what Lance did wrong in the Pope's eyes. After the incident in Andromeda Island, Lance had concentrated all his efforts in training and missions. As if something had possessed him after the defeat he suffered against the Specter trio, the Pegasus Saint spent everyday practicing cosmos and fighting in preparation to a promotion.

"I don't know why he'd do that, Lance. You've gotten so much better over the last year. I can't even hit you with my chains in spars any more because you got so good at sensing the cosmos I use."

Lance nodded. "_Yeah, it's almost like... some weird 'sense' has been awakening inside my head__." _He saw more soldiers taking seats in the Coliseum. The only reason these would attend the fight was to watch Lance get his ass kicked. "I've heard a lot about my opponent. Heracles Aguilon... He's supposed to be the top Silver Saint in Sanctuary, but I don't think I've ever met him."

"Master Guardnia once told me about him." revealed Shinta. "He said Aguilon was a drillmaster; a trainer who works with large groups of people in Sanctuary, and that he's been in Sanctuary for many years, even before some of the Gold Saints. They say that during the Civil War he stopped the streets of Rodario and Sanctuary Town from descending into chaos and that he has fought Gold Saints by himself." Shinta then saw someone entering the arena. "I think that's him."

There was an uproar of cheering from the small crowd as Lance's opponent arrived. The new Kentaurus Saint narrowed his eyes at the sight of a tall, armored man stepping on the field. Lance analyzed him.

Heracles Aguilon was a very large man, standing over eight feet tall and sporting a powerful, muscular build tightly packed beneath a black trainer and the Heracles Silver Cloth. A strong, square jaw coated itself in full beard, gray hair ran beneath his lion-shaped helmet to his shoulders height and several, nasty scars lined his face and exposed muscles, most notably a triple one that had barely missed his right eye and marked his brow and cheek, as if he had been attacked by a lion or a feline of the sort.

Black lines crossed over his full torso plate as decoration and a bead incrusted, round plate protected his entire neck. A single, round pad curved itself around his left shoulder and his left forearm protection was thick and spiked, resembling a mace. His right shoulder was exposed but the entirety of his right arm was protected by bicep and forearm guards strapped to it while a set of simple, balanced greaves run up to his knees. Finally, the silver-colored metal 'Belt of Hyppolita', depicting Ares' sword, adorned and protected his waist.

Unlike all the other giants Lance had faced so far, Aguilon didn't seem to have any particular lack of muscle balance, possessing normal looking arm, neck and leg lengths for someone of his stature, making him also seem terrifyingly nimble for his weight. All the other skyscraper warriors of Sanctuary Pegasus had met always seemed to have one oversized aspect to them in relation to the rest of their attributes, like enormous gorilla arms, colossal shoulders or immeasurable stupidity. The combination of sharp eyes, precise body balance and imposing figure made Aguilon seem to Lance like someone truly out of the regular definition of muscle-head.

"KICK HIS ASS, AGUILON!" a soldier at the stand shouted.

"YEAH!"

"This is gonna be good!"

"Break his fucking face!" one suggested.

The enormous man calmly walked towards Pegasus, not taking heed to any of the cheer. In fact, he seemed slightly bored by it and the sight of middle fingers and soldiers preparing to toss rotten fruit didn't please him either. With a raise of his hand, he caused the foot soldiers to shout out his name in cheer, but also gave order for his personal unit to make their move.

In the stands, the group of twelve soldiers sitting together nodded in accordance and stood up. Widely known as the Herculean Guard, they were Aguilon's personal, elite squadron of foot soldiers, handpicked by the veteran Silver Saint not just for their strength, but for their discipline, honor and willpower. They were characterized by the silver outlines in the plates and pieces of their armors, the way their eyes were shadowed by the hoplite helmets, by the semi-roman scale armor and the silver colored shield each marked one labor of Hercules.

"**Silence!**" the Herculean Guard with the Cerberus labor shield shouted. "Lord Heracles Aguilon is now engaging in a respectful match for His Holiness, Pope Arles, to watch. There will be no hissing at the foe. Have shame upon thy faces! How dare you disgrace your units with such vulgar display before the man chosen by Athena?!"

And before Lance and Shinta's bewildered eyes, the crowd went silent and dropped the fruit they had brought to throw at Lance. One by one, they grudgingly sat down and went quiet and it was not until complete order was established that the Herculean Guard also sat down to watch the match.

"...Holy shit..." muttered Lance.

"G-good luck, Lance. I'll be watching with everyone else." Shinta then rushed out of the field quite hastily before Lance even had time to react.

A shadow suddenly fell upon the red eyed teen and the Kentaurus Silver Saint found himself standing alone before a man that, though not quite as tall as Minotaurus Guen, made him relive the sensation of the sun being blocked out by an insurmountable foe. An intense stare was shared between the two when hardened brown eyes met defiant red ones. Without a word having yet been shared between the two, Lance had the sensation of standing before a true warrior.

Tension rose between the two, heightened by the atmosphere of enforced respect created by Aguilon's men. If the elite soldiers could create such a reaction, just how powerful was their trainer? Lance, feelings beads of sweat run down his temples, expected the match to start at any moment, and was surprised when instead he saw an armored hand extend itself to him. "Pegasus Lance, I presume?" asked Aguilon.

Lance blinked. "...It's Kentaurus Lance right now."

"That will remain to be seen in this fight and is no excuse for a man not to shake another man's hand!" Aguilon reminded him. Lance hesitated once more, taken by surprise, but eventually returned the handshake. "That's more like it! I have heard much about you. I have to admit, defeating a Silver Saint like Kastiel is no small feat... but then again, I remember drilling that stupid boy myself and how careless he can become."

The mere mention of Kastiel's name put Lance back into a tense mood. "What is going on here? Why do I have to fight you?" Lance demanded to know.

Aguilon laughed out loud. It was a sudden, hearty laugh that came as a big surprise from a man that had looked so stern until right then. "HA, HA, HA, HA! You really haven't been taught anything by Kastiel! It's fine, I'll explain it to you. Tell me, do you know about a constellation protection? You must earn a Cloth's respect by usually undergoing a series of tests and training period, the length and nature depending on each Cloth, so that you'll be watched over by their stars."

"Yeah, I know that."

Heracles explained. "Bronze and Silver Cloths usually require three years of testing, not counting the three years of instruction one gets just to become a Saint. Just having the Cloth on your shoulders doesn't mean you've fallen under its constellation protection, where the real power and favor comes from, correct?"

Lance raised a brow. He hadn't been taught anything of this. "So what, you're here to help me impress this Silver Cloth?"

"Partly, yes, I am. Bronze and Silver Cloths usually require all sorts of binding rituals. There is one Cloth in China that wants you to reverse the current of a waterfall, for example. In order to get my Cloth, I had to force a bull on the ground with my bare hands, amongst other things." Aguilon explained. "The Kentaurus Silver Cloth follows the myth of the centaur creatures, who were aggressive and war-like. A good battle should be enough to get it to take you under its protection and, only then, will you be truly the Centaur Silver Saint."

Realization hit Lance followed by relief. So this is why the Pope said he couldn't announce him as the new Kentaurus Silver Saint. He still had the feeling that Arles was toying with him somehow, though. "Okay, I get it, but why you? What is the other reason you're here?"

Aguilon scoffed. "Face it, kid; you're not going to impress anyone by fighting foes everyone knows you can beat, otherwise you'd just win the lame contest and that would be it. Right now I'd say from your record you're among the top five Silver Saints and I'm the strongest thing you can face next to a Gold Saint in these parts, second in line for the Gold Cloth of Taurus. Don't think for a minute I'll go easy on you. Let your guard down during this match and I'll _destroy_ you!"

Aguilon then pulled out a rock from the ground and crushed it right in front of Lance with his hand before letting the wind wash the resulting dust from his palm. Several foot soldiers saw this and were at the edge of their seats with excitement. They'd finally get to see the punk that terrorized the ranks get his comeuppance.

Lance raised a brow. What was with this guy? One minute he was stern-looking and menacing, the next one he was acting nice and explaining things to him and then he was back into the merciless warrior he looked like. The strange, almost silly attitude did not however calm the bad feeling Lance was getting about that fight.

{======================|0|======================}

In the stands, in a spot with less Lance haters, Shinta had taken a seat and now gulped at the sight of the poor rock reduced to dirt. Not an impressive feat at all for a Saint, but the way Aguilon did it with so little cosmos was super scary.

Without the Andromeda Saint even noticing at first, Daniel, disguised gardener of the Taurus House, sat by his side. Shinta suddenly felt a shadow over him and realized that a ten foot tall man with blonde hair running down his back and lines on his face just took over three seats next to him and whole bunch more in front with his legs.

Daniel noticed he startled Shinta. "Oh, excuse me."

Shinta couldn't help but stare at the gargantuan men. He looked like he could crush Shinta's head with his fingers. "Oh, hmm, don't worry, I just-"

"Sorry," Daniel tucked his legs together and leaned his head down so as to not take over so many seats. "I always forget how tiny these seat steps are." He saw Shinta's armor and feigned ignorance. "Oh, and you're a Saint to make it worse. I apologize."

"It's okay. You're here to watch the fight?" Daniel nodded. "...Lance didn't do anything bad to you, right? You're not here to watch him get beaten up?"

Daniel laughed. "Oh, no, of course not! I'm here to watch Aguilon fight." he said. It was not entirely a lie.

"You know that Silver Saint?"

"Aguilon is a famous face, but yes, I've known him personally since we were very young, back when he was a trainee. I bet this is going to be a great match. As one born as a Taurus, I always enjoy a good fight and Aguilon can sure make them scream." he commented, though this seemed to aggravate Shinta's preoccupation. "You... don't look like the type that would enjoy this sort of thing, if you don't mind me saying. Let me introduce myself; my name is Daniel, I work at the Golden Zodiac as a gardener." Another technical truth.

"My name is Andromeda Shinta Akiyama and... yes, I'm not the type to enjoy fighting." admitted the green-haired boy. "I'm here to support my friend, Lance. I know it may sound weird for a Saint to say this, but I'm a pacifist, I don't like seeing people hurt each other."

"Ah, a pacifist..." Daniel sighed.

Shinta squinted. "Is something wrong with it?"

Daniel took a moment to react, as if he had been recalling something. "Something wrong? Of course not; quite on the contrary, I think it's wonderful. I only know meat heads and warmongers in Sanctuary. I think there being a couple of people who think like you in this place is great." Daniel then chuckled.

Shinta couldn't help but be infected by the man's good mood and compliment. He felt his worried frown quirk upwards. "Yeah, I've noticed many times that not a lot of people think like me in Sanctuary, but I suppose it's normal. I'm in the army, after all."

"That is no excuse for everyone to be violent, you know?"

Shinta pondered his words. "Well,... yeah, but-"

"Actually, to tell you the truth, I... had a neighbor, living right in front of my House, who was a pacifist, too, though he was Saint."

Green eyes widened. "Really? What was he like?"

"A wonderful man, he was; couldn't stand the thought of war and spent his time crafting all sorts of beautiful things. Unfortunately,... he passed away, leaving me only with bitter old soldiers as friends." Daniel confessed.

Shinta frowned sadly, especially since the neighbor was someone who might have been a kindred spirit to Shinta. The saddened look on the face of such an enormous man made it all the worse. "I'm so sorry. How did he die?"

"Well,...I try to remember him for how he lived, not how he died; always fiddling in his workshop, always being so nice to everyone... that is worth a lot more than the tragedy of his death." Daniel said. A quiet chuckle shifted his mood. "He was a bit weird, too. He named his second kid after his ancestors' land." Daniel then shook off his nostalgia. "Figure that..."

Shinta sensed an impending desire from the man to change subject. "I see... so anyways is Aguilon dangerous? Do you think Lance is in trouble? Those soldiers of his looked really strong."

Daniel frowned. "Aguilon's no mollycoddler, I'll tell you that much, and the Herculean Guard get their strictness from him. You're friend is in for a hell of a fight, but Aguilon is no lunatic, either."

Shinta sighed in relief. The important thing was that Lance was in no danger of anything terrible happening to him. Master Guardnia had told Shinta so many stories of lethal injuries and disfigurements and, for some reason, ears being chopped off was a trend in Sanctuary's Coliseums. Shinta got up and shouted "Good luck, Lance! Do your best!"

{======================|0|======================}

The two Silver Saints in the arena watched as the Pope stood up. "You may begin the match!"

Tension spiked on the field and Lance's body went tense into a basic fighting pose. Aguilon didn't seem to pay attention to him, instead looking at Arles. The Heracles Silver Saint sent a mental message to the Pope. "_How far do you want me to take this?_" The Pope shook his head, a previously arranged signal between the two of them that meant that Aguilon should just see where it goes. The Heracles Saint nodded and turned to his foe.

For the past two years, Pegasus Lance had been the biggest headache in Sanctuary's Saint ranks, starting from the moment he defeated Kastiel. Were it not for Pegasus' pairing with the Andromeda Saint, Aguilon was certain that sooner or later he would be called to discipline the red-eyed rebel. He had sometimes imagined what that moment would be like, but never feared it. Even then, the gigantic Silver Saint was certain he would be the one to control the pace of the battle.

It was also fairly obvious the Kentaurus Saint was nervous and knew that something wasn't right about this match. The combination of small beads of sweat on his temple and gritted teeth did not escape the eyes of Heracles Aguilon. The older Silver Saint did not blame him. The Pope often had an obscure way of going on about things.

"Alright..." Lance muttered. "Let's do this!" A sudden blitz and a sonic boom followed. Aguilon lost track of Lance's position for a second but remained still. Lance went around him a couple of times and approached him from the right, intent of striking the man's head. Cosmos run down his legs to boost his movements and he made his move.

Heracles' ear quirked with the sound of a foot leaping near him.

"**KENTAURUS CHARGE FIST!**" Lance shouted. He felt his cosmos increasing more than he expected and fill his arm with a white aura with a slight silver glint. As soon as he came close enough he thrust his fist at the lion's helmet.

Something large and covered with silver colored armor suddenly stopped his punch right in its tracks, letting a bursting sound of impact fill the arena. Lance's red eyes widened in shock at the sight of Aguilon's palm having tanked his attack.

Aguilon locked eyes with him. "That's not enough, Pegasus!"

"W-what-" Lance's phrase was cut short when the palm closed around his fist and pulled him to the giant, who pummeled Lance's face with a huge punch. Lance screamed and felt his leg being grabbed and pulled over the man's shoulder before the red eyed Saint was bashed on the ground so harshly the marble cracked loudly and gave in, sinking him.

Lance coughed out blood, still feeling his world spinning. Shaking, he raised himself from the rubble and looked up to see a very unimpressed Aguilon staring down on him. He rolled to the side to dodge a series of blows that almost pinned him back to the ground and positioned himself away from his foe.

Aguilon raised his fist from the dirt and scoffed. "Come on, is that all? This fight is going to be short." Lance gritted teeth and tried to keep calm. Once more, he blitzed out of sight. Aguilon sighed and did the same, leaving the area seemingly empty to the audience.

A sudden clash of elbows, however, made them reappear in the center of the arena. Lance instantly stepped back from the opponent so as to not let Aguilon grab him again. Heracles, however, sped around him in an instant and let his shadow swallow the amateur Silver.

The sensation of the shadow and a pair of eyes looking down on his back sent a shiver to Lance's spine. "_He's so fast!_" He turned around and confronted the Silver Saint.

"You're moving around as you should to try to take advantage of my size, but experience won't be enough to beat me." warned Aguilon. Silver cosmos burst up from around his body and engulfed him. "So, Pegasus, are you ready?"

Lance gulped and raised his clenched fists. Was Aguilon just playing around with him? "_I can't afford to make any mistakes, this guy is clearly different from everyone else I've faced so far._" The Kentaurus Silver Saint let his white aura emerge and power up around him. Eventually, it started shifting into burning orange.

"I imagine you're used to prey on bigger foes' inferior speed." commented Aguilon. "What will you do now, Pegasus? Will you give up now that you can't do that? Of course, if you do that, you relinquish the Silver Cloth."

"What?! Give up?!" Lance protested. He furiously shook his head. "You gotta be kidding me. I haven't even got you to fight me seriously!"

Aguilon laughed out loud. "Fine, let's raise the bar a little!" He then suddenly dashed forward to meet Lance with an array of successive punches. Lance charged cosmos into his forearm guards and soon found himself almost desperately trying to keeping the blow barrage at bay while trying to find an opening. He was forced to step back several times and widen his eyes in emergency; Aguilon's pressure was not letting up a single bit.

A spike from Aguilon's left forearm suddenly grazed his face, slashing Lance. Knowing he couldn't outlast his opponent, Kentaurus rushed forward with a palm blow that struck Aguilon's punch, stopping it. The sudden shift of the flow caught Aguilon by surprise and allowed Lance to plant a kick as hard as he could on the warrior's waist, which only seemed to have the effect of pushing him back a bit.

A bit more used to the intensity of Aguilon's attacks, Lance was able to dodge a sudden swing from the left, get within Heracles' area and strike him again with the elbow. Cosmos exploded around the roaring Lance, speeding him up so that he could deliver two more powerful blows to the chest. Aguilon stepped back once more and tried to catch the attacker, but Lance jumped to avoid his arms and charged cosmos into his feet "**KENTAURUS CHARGE FIST!**" Kentaurus bashed them both straight on Aguilon's face, blasting the Silver Saint so hard the huge man was forced to let out his first grunt of pain and blood.

The risky move caused Lance to fall on his back but he flipped back to get away from Heracles. He panted as he got up, feeling his aura calm down. If it would really take moves this daring and cosmos consuming to hurt Aguilon, then Lance was in big trouble.

The warrior rubbed his jaw. "Heh, heh! That's more like it. You're fighting more like a warrior, now!" Aguilon clashed his knuckles together and focused his energy. "Seems like all it took was push you a bit. Let's keep going."

"_I'm used to fighting adversity, that's all. I don't know yet how I'm going to beat you._" Lance thought to himself. Aguilon didn't let him have time for further thoughts, though, because he rushed at Lance with a punched that forced the teen on the defensive with a cross block. He felt the enormous strength of his opponent make his body shake. "_D-damn it! H-how strong is this guy?_"

{======================|0|======================}

**Kentaurus Lance**

**Strength: 6  
Skill: 6  
Mind: 5  
Spirit: 5  
Violence: 7  
Cosmos: 250 (unmastered 7th sense)  
FFS: 1450**

**vs**

**Heracles Aguilon**

**Strength: 9  
Skill: 7  
Mind: 8  
Spirit: 7  
Violence: 8  
Cosmos: 1000  
FFS: 7800**

_Note: Keep in mind that FFS scores don't have a hand in how much fighters pruposely hold back throughout a battle._

{======================|0|======================}

His attention was forced down when a huge kick tried to strike him, but Lance dodge with a head turn. A counter was attempted with Lance leaping and side-kicking Aguilon, but a plated arm took the blow. Lance stopped his fall with his hand and a rolling. He felt like he was trying to take down a truck.

It was made all the worse when Aguilon suddenly smirked and blinked away. An enormous lariat blow then exploded on his chest and his world went dark. Blood came out of his mouth and his feet left the ground. He felt hands grabbing him.

"**Kornephoros!**" Aguilon declared. Lance opened his red eyes only to see the fading image of the Heracles constellation behind Aguilon as the larger Silver Saint burned Silver cosmos in his hands which burst out a powerful typhoon that struck the new Silver Saint. Lance screamed and the crowd gasped as the attack lifted Kentaurus into the air at an enormous speed. "It's not over yet!" Aguilon then gave chase with a leap that super sped him through the sky.

Lance felt his body slow down and halt in the air, still sustained by the sudden wind currents. Just when he thought he'd have an opportunity to turn the attack around, though, Aguilon suddenly somehow appeared right above him. The large Silver Saint's foot then glowed brightly in white light that blinded Lance. Aguilon flipped his body over itself and delivered a devastating kick to Lance that shot the Kentaurus straight back to the arena.

He crashed on the floor like a rock which then dragged through shattered rubble. The crowd cheered at the amazing move, muffling out Shinta's concerned gasp. Heracles effortlessly landed from his leap and looked down on the floored, bloody Saint.

Feeling only the harsh, ruined rock against his skin, his head spinning around and blood dripping from his body. Lance coughed yet again, feeling the damage Heracles just caused that made him tear him apart with pain. He slowly struggled to get back on his feet, though he only managed to barely stand, his body trembling as much as his sight.

{======================|0|======================}

The few people occupying the stands went nuts and the Herculean Guard didn't seem interest in stopping them this time. Their trainer was occupied and the Pope wasn't about to make any announcement. "AGUILON! AGUILON! AGUILON!"

"Kick his ass!"

"YEAH!"

Shinta gasped. "Oh, no, Lance!" he screamed as he got up from his seat and moved to the edge as much as he could. Daniel grabbed him by the shoulder to contain him. "Lance, don't try too hard! You're hurt!"

Daniel stared at the sight of the former Pegasus Bronze Saint putting up a pathetic stand before Aguilon. It looked like Lance was about to fall over. "_Aguilon's Kornephoros lifts the opponent high into the air with the strength of Hercules himself;_ _to the untrained eye, it seems like he has the element of Wind, but the truth is that he just executes a simple arm movement that carries such a herculean power that it blasts the air into a twister that is said to be almost as strong as the wind storm of the Great Bodyguard of Athena._" He recalled. "The move Aguilon used is very powerful and then Aguilon just knocked him back to the ground... I'm surprised your friend took such a blow and still stands."

The Andromeda Saint saw Lance struggling to stay on his feet while bleeding all over. "He can take a lot of damage... He's strong..." Shinta's concern, however, overpowered his trust. "But at this rate he could get killed! He's too stubborn to stay down if he knows he can still throw one last punch. If he doesn't stop the match right now-"

"If he stops, he loses the Silver Cloth." Daniel reminded Shinta. "He has to fight until the end, whether the end means victory or the hospital." Daniel's 7th sense then felt energy swelling in Centaur. "Besides, Pegasus are just like you said, stubborn to the last punch-"

"But Lance isn't like that!" Shinta suddenly shouted, narrowing his eyes. "He knows his limits! He always gives his best but he also always knows when it's time to make the smart move and retreat and I can't stand sitting here watching him get pummeled like that, even if he's a Pegasus!"

The disguised Taurus Saint folded his arms. "I don't think he's done yet."

Shinta squinted at the fight, trying to see whatever Daniel had seen. It was then that he detected the unmistakable orange energy of Lance's fire cosmos.

{======================|0|======================}

The loud sound of cheering did not distract Aguilon at all, who was instead focused entirely on the sight of his battered, bloody opponent panting and immersed in a flame of energy. He knew Lance's element was fire but it seemed like the teen was too smart to use it recklessly. This told Aguilon his opponent was aware of how much cosmos such a destructive element consumed. "_You are yet to make a decent hit, kid. You won't get the respect of Centaur even if you survive at this rate. Are you going to risk exhausting yourself by trying to burn me or what?_"

Lance tried to ignore the infuriating sound of the crowd rooting against him. He had half a mind of parading both his middle fingers at them, but it wouldn't be worth the cost of losing his concentration. He looked at his gauntlets and armor and saw them cracked all over. Lance was certain that, had he been wearing the Pegasus Cloth instead of this superior Silver Armor, he would have taken a lot more damage and probably lost his only protection "_I think I figured out his move, but I don't think I have a way to counter it yet. I have to think of a plan of action._"

{======================|0|======================}

Meanwhile, the Pope watched from his stand, intrigued, as the red eyed teen made his stand. "_Aguilon, raise the intensity. I want you push him further than this._" he ordered via mental message.

Aguilon returned the Pope with a nod of the head and focused back on the new Centaur Saint. He, too, thought it was time to push the kid further. He started burning his cosmos.

The sudden emanation of energy coming from Aguilon made the ground tremble and Lance stumble around. "G-great, what now?!" He saw Heracles tightening both his fists close to his chest, which shined with a layer of bright cosmos running up them, and once again the image of the mace-wielding Hercules appeared behind the warrior.

Winds picked up around Aguilon, also stirred by the sudden rise of energy. The warrior gritted teeth in concentration and hunched forward. Once the energy needed was gathered, his fists were suddenly swallowed by two spheres of white light. Aguilon laughed. "Take this! **HERACLES FISTS OF FURY!**" He then roared and punched both fists forward at the same time, launching an enormous duo of cosmos comets that ran straight towards Lance.

The alarmed young Saint gasped at the amount of power launched and immediately jumped to the side to dodge. He felt the blasts smash beneath his feet, causing two powerful explosions that sent him flying.

His back came crashing down on the ground, the sound of collapsing stone echoing from the two impact points. Lance widened his eyes in horror at the sight of two enormous, fuming craters now marking the spot the attacks as Heracles was charging for round two. "**HERACLES FISTS OF FURY!**" Seeing two meteors of light once again fill his vision, Lance jumped high in the air over the two attacks, but by the time they exploded, knocking him to the floor and allowing Hercules time to charge yet another attack. "**HERACLES FIST OF FURY!**"

Tired of the attack that was obviously meant to make Lance dance around and exhaust himself, the Centaur Saint once again jumped over the attack, though towards Aguilon. As soon as the attacks came close to hit the floor, Lance made his move by thrusting his hand at them. "**KENTAURUS BARRIER!**"

A large transparent shield formed in front of his fingers, absorbing the shock wave of the Fists of Fury, and allowing him to maintain his footing while landing.

This crucial detail then allowed him to counterattack

"**HERACLES FISTS OF FURY!**"

"**KENTAURUS CHARGE FIST!**"

Aguilon gritted teeth when his arms were suddenly struck by a bullet punch that forced him on the defensive. Having successfully pressed his counter, Lance then made his burning aura explode and empower his barrage of fists, which forced Aguilon to keep blocking with his forearms and armor plates.

The enormous warrior suddenly felt himself being pushed back by the assault, forcing him to step back several times and narrowly avoid a punch that grazed his unprotected right shoulder. He roared and blocked a heavier attack from Lance before swinging his arm at him. Lance blocked it with his elbow which then pushed the arm up, allowing him to roll underneath it while striking the ground. "**BLADE!**"

A sudden geyser of white light burst through the ground and Aguilon lost his footing. An elbow struck his back, causing his balance to be lost, before he sensed cosmos exploding behind him. Once more the bullet like impact, this time of a kick on his back, was felt and Aguilon was tossed into the enlarging hole on the ground, dropping down several feet to the old, collapsed catacombs located right below the area that were now just rubbished rock and metal.

Lance wasted no time as he burned his cosmos to the max in preparation for his fire attack. Though the image of the Centaur constellation did not appear behind him, due to not being under its protection, Lance still waved his hands around to form Centaur's star formation.

Aguilon coughed and got up from the rubble, feeling more dirty than hurt. He looked up above his shoulder to see Lances aura bursting to thrice its size. He then realized he fell right into the fireplace. "Why, you-"

"**KENTAURUS!**" Lance's fist was swallowed by a sphere of fire. "**FLAME ATTACK!**" The usual torrent of fire was then shot from his knuckles, though this time enlarged, empowered and carrying a slight glint of silver amongst the cosmic flames, courtesy of Lance's new protection.

The flame blast turned Aguilon's hole into a fire pit, consuming the enormous Silver Saint and exploding into a larger bonfire once the torrent's flow was cut. Lance watched, panting heavily, as his most destructive attack did its work.

{======================|0|======================}

The crowd protested and booed and Shinta sat at the edge of his seat. "Lance got him!" he celebrated. Even if it wasn't a strong finisher, Lance's Flame Attack was usually the move that caused the most amount of damage, especially against bigger foes and large groups of enemies. If this didn't hurt Aguilon, nothing would.

Daniel and, on the other side of the arena, Pope Shion, however, weren't convinced. They knew perfectly well what would come next.

Lance growled in frustration as he watched the flames dancing. He stepped away from the fiery hole, trying to keep his cosmos flowing.

Something large jumped from among the flames and plummeted on the floor before the Kentaurus Saint, raising dust everywhere. Heracles Aguilon raised himself in all his splendor. Lance sweated nervously as he realized that Aguilon was only marked in a couple of spots in his armor. He knew Flame Attack would never defeat Aguilon like this, but to cause so little damage...

Aguilon dusted the ash off him. "That's a powerful fire." he complimented. "The way you got the drop on me was surprising, too. For a second there, I was startled. You sure are fighting hard!"

"C-cut the crap!" Lance snarled, though the weakness of his voice denounced his exhaustion. "T-this is nothing compared to some of the shit I've been put through in missions for Sanctuary. Don't think you can take my Silver Cloth so easily." In truth, though, Lance was nearing his limit. "_I've been throwing everything I got at him and he still only has a couple of bruises. How can there be such a big gap between Kastiel and this guy?_"

The Heracles Saint sighed deeply in thought as he tried to figure out Lance's motivation. "Someone like you... it's strange that you'd want the Silver Cloth so badly. Why are you after it?"

Lance coughed, feeling hurt all over. "I t-thought I told you to cut the crap. Why w-would anyone want a p-promotion, huh?!" Aguilon's harsh stared showed Lance how unconvinced he was. "I don't have to tell anything about it. Y-you're just here to test me, right?"

The flames behind Aguilon started dying down, though the heat didn't diminished. Aguilon looked up to the sky and saw the saw being darkly clouded. "What poor motivation. No wonder you're having such a hard time."

"W-what?!"

"I feel sorry for you, Pegasus, because you're quite the pathetic Saint." Aguilon accused. "I imagine that somewhere deep in that head you don't even consider yourself one."

"SO WHAT?!" Lance shouted. "I d-don't like Sanctuary anyway! To me you can all just go to hell! All Sanctuary does is push me around, hate me, shout at me and then demand I do my duty to Athena. _Fuck_ Athena! And _fuck_ you Saints!"

Aguilon growled, insulted. "Now wait just a minute there, you-"

"If you want to know about my motivation, then why don't you go ask the teacher you sent to take care of me?! His name is Kastiel and he's probably abandoning some other kid in some Training Ground right now!" Lance confronted. "And this test... I bet it's as much of a farce as all the Masters here in Sanctuary! The Pope sure is comfortable over there, watching my ass get beaten by you, isn't he?! Ever since I got my Cloth he has done nothing more than make my life hell! _Hell_, the only friend I ever made in this dump is a Saint that thinks in the exact opposite manner as everyone of us assholes!"

There was rumbling among the clouds. Small drops of rain started falling on the arena before it picked up the pace, killing the remaining flames and soaking the two Silver Saints. Aguilon turned his face to the Pope. "_He really hates your guts, old man..._"

It took a bit, but he eventually got a reply from Pope Arles. "_Do your duty, Aguilon. Push him over the edge._"

"_Alright._" Aguilon spread his feet to adjust his footing, tightened his right fist and raised the other in a defensive manner. "At least you're passionate about something. Truth be told, Saint Lance, I'm not sure if I'd like some one as full of resentment as you in my order. Anger in the heart corrupts Saints and unfortunately you look a lot more like someone I'd fight against than someone I'd fight for."

Lance re-assumed a fighting pose. "Are you going to kick my ass or what?!"

Aguilon took a deep breath in preparation. He felt his cosmos swirling internally and rise up to his shoulder and then down to his fist. "I will put an end to this with a technique that was handed down to me by a lineage pure of mind. Hopefully, it will teach you a lesson about how it is, quite simply, not your destiny to be a Saint."

Reminded of Bellerophon's speeches, Lance growled. "Don't think you're the first to spill that kind of bullshit at me!"

Aguilon smirked. "Maybe not, but I bet I'm the first one to wreck you with this move!" Aguilon's aura then exploded into white light which gathered around his fists. The constellation of Hercules appeared in the background and the warrior roared loudly. "Take this! **HERACLES**" He then thrust is fist forward. "**RYU SEI KEN!**"

Lance's jaw dropped and his red eyes widened to the max when Aguilon's fist exploded into what seemed like hundreds, if not thousands of blue cosmic blasts fling at high speed at the Kentaurus Saint. Lance screamed and stepped back, caught completely by surprise, and his whole body relived the sensation of being bombarded by countless blasts of pure energy, each with the impact of a cosmos empowered fist.

Completely overwhelmed by the shower of attacks, his battered body fell to the ground screaming in pain and shock. Aguilon's fuming fist was lowered and the crowd was left with dumbfounded looks.

But there was a sudden uproar from the watchers and they all started screaming Aguilon's name and that of his attack. Lance was left on the ground, an expression of pure bewilderment filling his face. "_W-what?! That was... Bellerophon's move_!" The faint, concerned shout of the word 'Nissan' was heard and the crowd acted like the fight was won. Lance turned over and tried to get up only to feel countless new bruises on his body burning him with pain. Gritted teeth helped him endure the torture of standing back up. "_I...I was outside his arm reach but he hit me, anyway, like in the Temple of Pegasus!_"

"NOW! Get him NOW!"

"GO AGUILON!"

"NISSAN, STAND BACK FROM HIM!"

Lance saw Aguilon's fist fuming and still swirling with energy. Could all of those blasts have really been fists? Aguilon didn't leave his position, but Lance felt like he had truly suffered a brutal beatdown. Was this going to be just like Mount Olympus? Was Lance just going to now be trashed and thrown around like a doll by the move, just like Bellerophon did?

"Time to finish things, Pegasus Lance. It's a shame, but you just aren't ready for the Silver Cloth. Come back when you've grown some more." said Aguilon as he prepared another round. "**HERACLES RYU SEI KEN**!"

The large, silver coated punch once more unleashed the wave of meteor blasts of cosmos, and all Lance could think of was Bellerophon doing the same thing with him, mocking him, humiliating him, proving without reason of a doubt that Lance would never get out of Mount Olympus, much less get the Bronze Cloth of Pegasus.

He could also see the utter failure that were Death Queen Island, Arcadia and Andromeda Island; three cases of how he was too weak, both on the inside and the outside, to accomplish anything he sought out to. He couldn't stop what happened in Death Queen Island, even though he promised he would. He couldn't save virtually anyone in Arcadia, even though he told Shinta and Alexis he would, and in Andromeda Island... he couldn't do _anything_ but watch as Shinta solved the problem in a flash!

A sudden flare revived itself in his red eyes and Lance counterattacked. He saw immediately that some of the blasts were smaller and faster while others were bigger but slower. Having seen the move so many times before, he also deduced that its current speed should be about of 850 punches per second. When the first meteor reached him, Lance was then easily able to dodge it with a side-step.

Aguilon widened his eyes.

"_Never again!_" thought Lance as his orange aura brightened up and enlarged. The second meteor, a smaller one, arrived and Lance effortlessly blocked it with the palm of his hand. He kept on dodging the bigger meteors and blocking the smaller ones, seeing the pattern of the punches of cosmos being thrown and easily making his way through them, approaching his opponent more and more with each dodge and block.

Aguilon growled and threw one last round of faster Meteor Fists, but the Kentaurus Saint had already adjusted completely to move, allowing him to side step the first punch, reach out to him with his hand and catch Aguilon's enormous wrist in the process of executing the technique. "What?!"

"NEVER AGAIN!" his aura exploded in size and suddenly change from orange to a brilliant gold. "WILL I LET YOU TELL ME WHAT I CAN'T ACHIEVE! **KENTAURUS!**"Lance then seemingly dashed into a beam of light that left behind a dragged image of his body through the rain drops.** "CHARGE FIST**!"

Aguilon reacted instantly. "**KORNEPHOROS!**" his arms both swept to create the typhoon.

But he was too late and the thunderous sound of a fist crashing straight against his chestplate's center between his swinging arms and the Silver surface of the protection gave in, cracking and swallowing the punch. For the first time in the fight, Aguilon let out a real complaint of pain. Lance roared and dug his fist deeper into the damaged armor, pushing the enormous warrior back.

Aguilon's feet stomped the ground harshly to stop his back dragging and raised his fist high in the air. White cosmos flowed to it, forming a huge ball of energy. "**HERACLES! SUI SEI KEN**!"

He then let it down and hammered it straight on the Kentaurus Saint, smashing the screaming Lance with a Comet of cosmos that crushed him against the floor, loudly shattering the ground and exploding into a flash of light that briefly blinded everyone.

Said light soon emanated and a suspenseful silence filled the arena. The Herculean Guard, concerned with their Master, got up but did not leave the stand. As soon as everything became clear, it was a screaming Shinta that rushed down the arena.

"NISSAN!" he shouted.

Standing before a crater of rubble was the imposing, tall and victorious figure of Silver Saint Heracles Aguilon, who now sported a cracked spot in his otherwise smooth Heracles torso armor. The large mass of energy his fist had become disappeared as he was gasping heavily.

A defeated, unconscious, bleeding Lance laid on the ground before him, his Silver Cloth cracked all over as the small flames of his golden cosmos were dying out. The Pope stood up from his seat. "The match is over! Heracles Aguilon wins!"

The silence remained unbroken despite this declaration, except for the sound of the rain and of Shinta getting to Lance and trying to wake him up. The disguised Taurus Daniel walked over the Coliseum's stands and stood before the Pope. "Your Holiness..."

"Saint Daniel, please tell me you saw what everyone else saw just now." Shion requested.

Daniel tried to decipher the emotions in his voice. "Heracles Aguilon won...and, apparently, Pegasus Lance just executed an attack at the _speed of light_."

Shion nodded in confirmation. "Daniel, call the other Gold Saints. Tell them I'm summoning them to an important meeting. I need to discuss something with you all."

Already having an idea of what it was, Daniel did not hesitate. He blitzed away from the scene to warn Malta, Kirin, Saga, Aiolos and Mu. He wasn't sure of what was going to happen now, but they had a long talk ahead of them.

Rain kept harshly falling on the arena as Aguilon watched the Andromeda Saint roll over Lance and trying to wake him up. The large warrior scratched the damage caused to his armor, still a bit shocked by the sudden twist in the fight. He saw His Holiness approaching.

"L-Lance! Lance, please wake up!" Shinta screamed.

"He's not in danger." Aguilon assured. "I'm sorry I hurt your friend, but a fight is a fight!" Shinta got teary-eyed and felt like lashing out, but he knew Aguilon was not a fault. Lance would never forgive him if he didn't respect the outcome of the duel, either. Aguilon got down on his knees to better analyze his victim. "You should let someone from the hospital carry him. I broke some of his bones and he shouldn't be moved too much."

The Pope then arrived with his golden-armored Papal Guard escort, one of which held an umbrella above the head figure of Sanctuary. "Congratulations, Heracles Aguilon, that was a marvelous fight."

"Oh, great, it's the _pretty boys_..." one Herculean Guard commented under his breath.

The Silver armored Herculean Guard then arrived as well and tension suddenly spiked between the two foot soldier elite divisions. The Herculean and Papal Guard were bitter rivals and would always spare looks of contempt at each other. The Herculean Guard, however, bowed in sync with their trainer at the Pope. "I did what you requested me, your Holiness; pushed him right over the abyss." he then touched the hole in his chest plate. "I've done a good job, I presume. Ha, ha, ha!" he laughed weakly.

"Indeed, you did, Saint Aguilon. I knew Athena and I could always count on you. You are dismissed." Shion declared.

Shion then waited until Aguilon and the Herculean Guard left before he turned to the heartbroken Shinta and the unconscious Lance. "Saint Andromeda?"

Realizing that someone of great importance had joined the scene, Shinta hesitantly turned from tending to Lance and bowed to the Pope. "Y-yes, your Holiness?"

"Do not be sad over your partner's defeat. He did his best. However, I would like you to transmit a message to him. Tell him when he recovers that tomorrow a discussion about his future will be have amongst the Gold Saints regarding his future based on what happened today."

"What?! Is Lance in trouble? But he didn't do anything wrong!" Shinta protested. "After all he's been through... he ended up fighting to the end! Doesn't he deserve the Silver Cloth's respect?"

"That will be decided tomorrow, Saint Shinta." assured Shion. "I will have a soldier call the hospital for Saint Lance. Until tomorrow, may Athena be with the both of you." The Pope then left the Coliseum, Papal Guard in tow, and wondering what each Gold Saint will think once they hear what he has in mind.

{======================|0|======================}

**The Next day**

**Present Time**

**Pope's Halls**

{======================|0|======================}

"And that brings us here." concludes Daniel. "I went to find and alert all of you that the Pope had summoned us because he found a Cancer-born Saint who unlocked the 7th sense."

"So, in his fight with Aguilon, was it to test if Lance has the power of a Gold-Rank?" asked Saga.

Daniel rubbed his chin. "I'm not sure if I would say that. In my opinion, from what I saw, I don't think he did it on purpose. If he did, it was very rudimentary. A mastered 7th sense _is_ required to get the Cloth, but the Pope..." he then turned to Shion. "Your Holiness, you said you had a plan for him."

"I still do." confirmed Shion. "It was my intention to send him to a proper teacher; someone who could help him understand the 7th sense and at the same time instill in him the values Kerberos Kastiel did not, but regardless of who it would be, that would depend on him receiving the approval of the Gold Saint order anyway."

Capricorn Kirin snorted and looked away. Aquarius Malta remained calm, but in deep thinking. Aiolos was the first to break the silence. "So, we have talked about everything we need to talk about, right?" he asked. "We have spoken of everything pertaining to his ascension to a Gold Saint, so now how will we decide as a group if he's worthy or not?"

Mu looked at one of the large, curtained windows and saw the sun setting. "Boy, we've been here for quite some time." he concluded. "Master, how did you intended to settle this dispute?"

There was a loud knocking on the door before Shion could answer, alerting all the Gold Saints. "Yes?" called Shion.

The door opened and one of the Papal Guards rushed inside, forgetting his halberd. "Your Holiness, pardon me for interrupting, but I have news. It seems that our men have captured Pegasus Lance and Andromeda Shinta."

Shion widened his eyes. "...What?!"

"The unit has just arrived to the Pope's Halls with them and are awaiting orders."

"What?! Why did you bring them up instead of jailing them?" Malta demanded to know. "What are they even doing here?!"

"Well, it seems we'll now all get to see the spy with our own eyes." commented Kirin.

Everyone looked at the Pope, expecting instructions. "...W-well... let's all meet our candidate face to face."

With this, the bewildered Gold Saints and alarmed guard made their way out of the throne room together with the Pope.

{======================|0|======================}

**Chapter End**

{======================|0|======================}

**Next Chapter**: The Decision

**Release Date:** 2nd November, 2014

**Description**: The Gold Saints all encounter the Pegasus and Andromeda duo and the Pope makes up his mind about how the Gold Saints will decide Lance's future.

_Author Note: I'm not sure what to say about Heracles Aguilon. I believe I first came up with him, much like with Shinta, out of sudden necessity rather than planning. In version one, I was trying to come up with more, stronger Silver Saints and since I always liked Hercules, the myth figure, and I saw Heracles Algeti as kind of a missed opportunity in the canon series, I thought I'd create my own Silver Saint leader/ Heracles Saint. The decision to have him fight Lance as a test for the Silver Cloth was made in the 2nd version of the story and it has been transplanted to the 3rd, current one with an overhaul twitting and a very much adapted fighting scene._

_As for him having the Ryu Sei Ken, well, old readers already know where that will lead to, but even they don't what why the hell he has it. Guess you'll just have to read the story to find out..._


End file.
